


Burn It Down

by Danistalley12



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/F, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-15
Updated: 2018-05-02
Packaged: 2019-02-02 07:05:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 90,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12721917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Danistalley12/pseuds/Danistalley12
Summary: The world had been a dark and brutal place for people like Nicole for a as long as she could remember. She was born different, the realisation of just how different came when she was a young child but it didn't make the experience any less traumatic. She was a powered individual, someone who was born with special abilities and for that she was someone that was targeted by the authorities just for existing. After her 18th birthday, Nicole moves to Purgatory to try and escape her past and find a future but things change when she literally stumbles into Waverly Earp's life, whether that be for better or for worse. In a world where a mistake could cost her life and trust was as rare as the feeling of safety, Nicole Haught has to navigate her way through her sudden feelings and the complications that came with them all the while considering whether Waverly Earp was hiding something from her too.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back with a different story after finally deciding I've written something that is worth sharing. If this is terrible, I'll pretend like this never happened but if people enjoy this, I will try and get through this story as quickly as I can. My first shot at actually posting a Wayhaught fic so we will see how this goes.
> 
> Just to note too, this is an alternate universe so Shorty’s is a diner rather than a bar and a few other things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with a different story after finally deciding I've written something that is worth sharing. If this is terrible, I'll pretend like this never happened but if people enjoy this, I will try and get through this story as quickly as I can. My first shot at actually posting a Wayhaught fic so we will see how this goes.
> 
> This is going to kind of be in the realm of X-Men/Wynonna Earp and a few things in between and it'll take some time to establish but hopefully it will be worth it!

At an early age Nicole knew she was different, she knew that something about her was unique but it wasn’t something she could fully understand or wanted to express because she learnt about the harsh world quickly. She learnt early from watching the news with her father, she learnt by reading the newspaper when she gained the ability of putting sentences together, she learnt by hearing her peers talk. It started off with discriminatory slurs, foul looks and muttered insults under breaths before it turned into eloquent crusader politicians, spinning their lies, using their money, abusing their power and influence to get others to think like they wanted them to. Everything snowballed into the day where Nicole’s heart sunk through her stomach and fell at her feet with a cold, hard thud as she watched the same news presentation outlaw and restrict those who were like her; those who were different. She watched as people just like her were made to register, submit to medical testing before ultimately surrendering themselves for diagnosis, judgement and later imprisoned for something they were born with. 

She watched her parents expressions slowly change after the incident where she discovered just how different she was, turning from nurturing to neglecting within a single night. They had to blame the house burning down on faulty wiring, for a while the redhead wondered after a while if her parents had been referring to their child during their explanation. Her parents didn’t trust her from that day forward, constantly shifting between being scared and angry with their own child; holding secret conversations downstairs as they thought she slept. Her parents would never say the word, like it was dirty or made their daughter seem like more of a freak than they thought she was but Nicole was powered; like a number of the population that had been kept a secret for so long. She was gifted, or cursed, with flames dancing from her finger tips when she so desired; commanding fire from the palms of her hands to destroy anything in her way. She was powerful, she hadn’t tapped her potential yet but she couldn’t; her parents banned her from using her abilities anywhere near their house so much so that she wasn’t even trusted lighting a candle. 

Everything worsened when people were encouraged to start reporting their powered family and friends. Neighbours turned against neighbours, friends turned against friends and in Nicole’s case; parents turned against children. The world was becoming smaller by the day, the net to capture the powered stretching wider and further than it had ever before until it became only a matter of time before she knew they would report their daughter for her abilities. Nicole realised they were waiting until she turned 18, catching conversations and watching body language enough to know that if she wanted to survive then she had to leave. Just 3 weeks shy of her 17th birthday, Nicole gathered whatever she could into her car as her parents slept and fled for her freedom as well as her life, heading down a path that she wasn’t sure where it lead.  
She had to go, her parents always looked to her as an affliction and they were a ticking time bomb. The redhead didn’t want to hurt her parents, no matter how cruel or spiteful they may have been for something she couldn’t change but she knew she had to leave. She spent a year travelling around the country, hiding with other powered humans; trying to blend in like everyone else to avoid capture and persecution. No one knew what happened with the powered once they were taken away, Nicole had never heard of anyone returning so it was obviously something that she wanted to avoid. She kept her head down and kept to herself, she never stayed in one place long enough for anyone to learn her name but it was getting old and she was getting tired so she knew she needed a change. 

Along her travels she heard of a town called Purgatory, an apparent safe haven for powered people where it was far enough from everywhere else that most just turned a blind eye. The winter was dead cold and the population was small but the Sheriff was kind and the townsfolk too wrapped up in themselves to even bother with authorities so that’s where Nicole decided to go. With so many people running, Nicole had gathered a back-story and cultivated an altered identity in order to keep herself safe should she need it. All she wanted was a normal life, she wasn’t interested in talking with the people who approached her, urging her to join the powered movement that was pushing to take over from regular humans. They may have been right, certain people may have deserved what was coming to them but Nicole didn’t want to be the one dishing revenge out; she just wanted to graduate and go to college like other normal kids her age. 

That’s how she ended up at the track team tryouts at Purgatory high; renting a cheap piece of property with the money she had drawn out as cash from birthdays and hush money from her parents. Her body was cold, freezing as her legs began to tingle while she waited out on the track. She folded her arms loosely over her chest, allowing the heat she was channelling through her palms to warm her body mildly. 

She looked around to see many of the students huddled in the group looking towards her, whispering to their friends as rumours had already started about her and why she was in Purgatory within the first 3 weeks she had been there. Rumours weren’t harmful for Nicole but they could be dangerous and she knew that, she had seen people be taken away for much less than a few whispers down a hallway. Her mind was ripped from her thoughts as she heard her name being called; the coach identifying those who had made the track team. A small smile appeared on her face, giving a nod of thanks towards the coach before she was handed an information pack and sent on her way home. 

Nicole couldn’t reach her jacket fast enough, she stuffed her papers inside her backpack before pulling her hood over her head and hurrying towards the carpark to hopefully get some other warmth into her body. Her head was down and she was focused on her numb feet as she hurried towards her car, so much so that they didn’t realize the body crossing in front of her until she hit it. She heard the other person grunt quietly before hearing the loud thud of books being strewn across the concrete floor, instinctively her arm reached out to grab the other person’s waist to stop them from falling. 

With her free hand, she removed her hood, her breath hitching in her lungs as she realised who she had knocked into and how closely she was holding the other girl. Waverly Earp, the most popular girl in school and head cheerleader stood only inches away with wide eyes and raggedy breath as their eyes locked firmly. Nicole felt an odd twang in her chest, her heart picking up a few beats as she loosened her grip from Waverly’s waist, regaining her balance but not moving whilst she curiously gazed at the redhead. It only made things worse when Nicole realised that Waverly was in her cheer uniform with a loose jacket the only thing keeping her body warm. 

“I’m so sorry, I wasn’t paying any attention to where I was going.” Nicole offered an awkward apology after she comprehended they had been standing there without talking for a good 30 seconds. 

“I can tell,” Waverly offered quietly as a smirk pulled on her lips, “It’s okay, I was in my own little world too so I guess we’re both to blame.” 

“I don’t know about that,” Nicole shook her head, fighting a smile from her expression as she noticed just how contagious Waverly’s growing grin was, “If I was paying attention I would have noticed you, how could I not?”

“Oh, well I’m glad you think that,” Waverly responded playfully, breaking their eye contact to look down at her books, “If you had your hood off I’m sure I would have probably run into you still from being my old distracted self.” 

“Sorry about your books,” Nicole bent down quickly to start picking up Waverly’s books, the small brunette joining her to gather her things before they both stood; the redhead handing the other girl her things before rubbing her neck awkwardly, “I hope they’re not ruined, were you coming or going?” 

“I’m not sure who you think I am but I was definitely leaving school at this time in the afternoon rather than coming,” Waverly joked awkwardly, hugging her newly collected books to her chest. Her expression softened immediately as she saw Nicole’s nervous features, “I’m actually just going to work so I should probably leave.”

“Right, of course,” Nicole nodded, taking a step to the side so that Waverly could pass, “I should probably get home and out of these clothes.” 

“I saw you down at tryouts when I was down there for a while,” Waverly admitted casually, giving Nicole a gentle nudge, “You’re really fast for a new girl.”

“I’m glad my new girl status didn’t hinder my speed,” The redhead joked back, grinning as she heard a chuckle leave Waverly’s mouth, “Sorry again, I’ll make sure to pay attention where I walk from now on.”

“Make sure you do but if you don’t, make sure it’s me you run into again,” Waverly joked lightheartedly, her hand appearing out in front of her, “I’m Waverly Earp by the way.”

“I know,” Nicole said almost as soon as the words left Waverly’s mouth, “I mean you’re the most popular girl in school and you’re a cheerleader so it’s kind of hard not to know who you are.”

“Which I usually hate but in this case, I’m okay with.” 

“I’m Nicole, Nicole Haught” Nicole offered her hand to Waverly to shake it, the brunette pausing as their hands met, “I’ve been meaning to introduce myself in English.” 

“I know who you are too, you are the new girl in a small town and I’ve seen you in class so I wish you had introduced yourself,” Waverly offered happily, “Your hands are super warm.”  
“I guess it’s because I was running,” Nicole tried to explain quickly, pulling her hand from Waverly’s to stuff them in her pockets, “I should let you get to work but maybe I’ll see you around.”

“Hopefully.” Waverly replied with a nod, giving Nicole one more smile before she hurried towards her car. 

Nicole could only stand in her spot as the whirlwind that was Waverly Earp left the school parking lot, her lungs deflating as she wondered exactly what had just happened. She had enough school experience to know that popular girls were not supposed to be as nice as Waverly had just been and contemplated how she really knew who Nicole was.  
Her mind shifted back to being out in the open, pulling her hood over her head once more before rushing to her car and locking herself inside; dumping her bag in the passenger seat. She felt a small smile on her face as she realized that she had just had the first good and relatively normal day in a very long time. 

Nicole took several wrong turns towards her small house, knowing she wasn’t being followed but not wanting to take the risk of making her route too obvious. She had spent so long looking over her shoulder that it had become a habit and she wasn’t naive enough to think that people wouldn’t be watching her in a small town. Blending into Purgatory was key to her survival but she was also so accustomed to keeping to herself and minding her own business that she wasn’t sure how she was going to marry the two together. 

The next day was wholly uneventful for the redhead, sitting by herself at lunch; hearing whispers and catching glances at Waverly Earp in the hallway who seemingly returned them with a knowing smile. She found herself in need of food that evening, not having anything left in her house to cook she decided she would go to one of only two diners in Purgatory, entering Shorty’s with reluctance. Nicole seated herself in a corner booth, the diner almost completely empty that early in the evening apart from a few older gentlemen sitting by the counter. Receiving a clear reminder as soon as she arrived as to why she worked so hard to stay under the radar with multiple reports of communities of powered people being captured on the news reports. 

Her fists clenched tightly in her lap, feeling anger bubbling through her body as she watched people just like her being herded and treated like animals just for being born with abilities. She couldn’t understand how government officials could have caused so much chaos and hate towards a group of people who were just trying to live their lives. She was more than aware that there were less and less powered people on the streets; unsure of why the majority of civilians decided to turn the tide against people who were just like them. The only thing she could boil it down to was fear, the fear of the unknown and the fear of the powerful or different. 

Her mind flashed back to the first night she had discovered her abilities, standing in front of her then family home; her mother and father screaming for the help of their neighbours as she froze watching the flames seemingly reach as high as the clouds. The edges of her clothes were charred, her face dirty and smeared with ash but she will never forget the look of sheer terror and fear on the faces of her parents when they looked at her that night. She knew she was lucky, if that incident had occurred years later in that current social climate; they probably would have reported her then and there. 

She saw a hand wave over her eyes, hearing her name echoing inside her ears as her focus shifted to the owner of the hand who was watching on with a curious smile. Waverly Earp, who was still tying up her apron, stood in front of her with a knowing grin and wide eyes. 

“I thought I was going to have to call an ambulance or something,” Waverly admitted as she placed her notepad on the table, “You okay?”

“Yeah, sorry. I was just…”

“Distracted?” Waverly finished Nicole’s sentence for her, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, “It seems like you do that a lot.” 

“Bad habit,” Nicole exhaled deeply with a nod, trying to steal her focus back to the present day, not being able to filter her words before they came out, “I’m okay, just a little depressed by the news.”

“I know, it’s horrible,” Waverly said shaking her head quickly, real concern etched on her features, “Probably the one thing I like about living out here is that it seems so far away from all that horrible stuff. They just want to live their lives like the rest of us.” 

Nicole was caught by surprise; she knew that people her age were more open to powered people and fierce in protecting her rights but she wasn’t sure she ever expected Waverly Earp to tell her something that was considered so strong and polarizing. 

“You actually think that?” Nicole asked with a furrowed brow, unable to hide her complete surprise. 

“I really do and I don’t have time for people who think otherwise,” Waverly responded with a shrug, as if it was the easiest thing in the world to admit, “So, what brings you to Shorty’s this evening?”

“Well, I’m kind of hungry,” The redhead pointed to the menu as she tried to brush off the warmth radiating from her chest, “I’m assuming this diner serves food?”

“Yeah, okay so it was a stupid question,” Waverly rolled her eyes playfully, sitting herself down to be directly across from the other girl, “I haven’t seen you come by here before, that’s all.” 

“I haven’t really had the chance but I’m starving after practice,” Nicole responded with a small shrug, “I didn’t realize making the team yesterday would mean training today.” 

“Coach runs a tight ship, I see that first hand,” Waverly nodded in agreement, “What looks good to you? I’d recommend the grilled cheese but stay away from the seafood chowder; it’s pretty disgusting.” 

“Are you supposed to tell me that?” 

“You’re a special customer so you get special insights,” Waverly jested happily, ducking her head momentarily just to break their eye contact before returning her gaze, “And by that I just mean you’re a possible friend of mine so I should probably try not to do anything to scare you off and if you have that chowder, I’ll probably never see you again.”

“Waverly, you’re the most popular girl at Purgatory High,” Nicole shook her head incredulously, “Do you need more friends?” 

“I’m sure you’ve seen movies, being head cheerleader isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be,” The brunette’s shoulder slumped immediately, trying to place some humour in a situation that she clearly found anything but amusing, “But you probably don’t want to hear about the poor popular girl and her problems.” 

“I’ve never been popular so I don’t know if I can sympathize with your overly popular problems,” Nicole poked lightly at the waitress, trying to bring the smile back to her face “But knowing people like I do, I’m positive it’s not actually all it’s cracked up to be.” 

“I don’t believe that you’ve never been popular,” Waverly replied quickly, disbelief in her tone, “I mean, you’re athletic, you’re smart from what I’ve seen, you’re funny when you want to be and you’re beautiful so I don’t see how you have never been popular.”

“It’s never really been high on my agenda, but thank you,” The redhead offered shyly, pushing her shoulder length hair behind her ear, “I probably sound super weird but I didn't have a lot of friends back home and I'm probably not going to make a lot here either.” 

“Where are you from, Nicole?” Waverly asked openly and curiously, leaning forward subtly, “I mean I’ve heard a few different things but I figure it’s best to go the source.”

“And what exactly have you heard about me?” Nicole’s concern peaked as she watched Waverly eye her curiously but playfully at the same time, her comments coming from a friendly place but causing the redhead to worry, “Surely your school has more interesting things to talk about.” 

“No, they actually don’t,” Waverly responded with a chuckle, waving off the concerned look in Nicole’s face, “It’s fine, it’s just what everyone does here. I promise you they’ll find something soon enough to talk about and you’ll just blend on in.” 

“That’s the hope,” Nicole raised her eyebrows with a nod, “I’m from Chicago originally.”

“Well next time someone tells me you’re from Gingertown or Red Crotch County, I’ll let them know that it’s Gingertown, Chicago to them,” Waverly teased the other girl, fighting laughter from escaping from her mouth and only battling harder as she saw the grin on Nicole’s face, “Seriously though, I’ll make sure to shut that down if I hear that.”

“Why?” Nicole asked simply, shaking her head.

“Why would I correct them?”

“No, why are you being nice to me and asking me where I’m from?” Nicole questioned with a shake of her head, “Why would you care?”

“What reason do I have not to?” Waverly challenged with a quirked eyebrow, “I know you’re new here but not everyone in this town is the same and some of us know what it’s like to be talked about without actually being talked to.” 

“You’re saying the most popular girl at the school has been talked about like this?” The redhead shook her head in disbelief, feeling heat rise to her cheeks as she felt her heart beat only rising at the challenging smirk now evident on the brunette’s lips. 

“Those popular problems I was talking about before?” Waverly asked rhetorically, continuing after a moments pause, “I’m constantly surrounded by people who are more interested in what I can do for them rather than being my friend and by people who would turn on me in a second to be where I am. I’m not opposed to someone taking the so called title of being the popular girl in school because I know that in the grand scheme of things; with everything going on in the world right now, that it doesn’t mean a thing. The thing is just that I don’t know who I can trust and what so called friends are talking so much crap about me behind my back.” 

“I guess that would be tough.” Nicole conceded slowly.

“And I know it’s really the poor little popular girl story but I don’t even know if I have any real friends,” Waverly continued with a sigh, “Which is why, you’re not going to eat lunch by yourself anymore at school.”

“You saw that?” Nicole was genuinely shocked at that point, wondering why the other girl was paying so much attention to her, “I don’t even think I had lunch today…”

“Ever since you got here, you have been eating by yourself and every time I’ve had to stop myself from coming over and eating with you.” 

“So why didn’t you?” The redhead questioned with furrowed brows. 

“Because you didn’t look like you wanted company and I was worried you’d hate me if I sat down next to you,” Waverly’s eyes displayed nothing but honesty as she spoke, “And I know you probably don’t feel this but I have a curse where unfortunately I care what people think about me.”

“Believe it or not, I do care about what people say because a lot of the time rumours become fact and the truth becomes fiction,” Nicole sighed heavily after she finished speaking, fighting to figure out how Waverly pulled down her walls so quickly, “But I’m glad I give off the impression that I don’t.” 

“Can I ask why?” 

“You just did,” Nicole furrowed her brows, watching Waverly carefully, “Has anyone ever told you that you’re a real ball buster?” 

“Once or twice,” Waverly shrugged, “So?” 

“Because it’s easier that way,” Nicole answered vaguely without further explanation, quickly turning the conversation around, “So you didn’t sit next to me because you thought people would talk about the fact that you were sitting with me?” 

“I wanted to sit next to you but I didn’t want the talk to be for nothing if you hated me sitting next to you,” Waverly answered simply, as if it were the easiest thing to understand, “It’s just…Have you ever met someone that you know instantly has come into your life for a reason?” 

“Yeah…” 

“I should probably get back to work,” Waverly pulled her gaze from Nicole’s eyes, the redhead seeing a slight flush on the brunette’s cheeks, “Here I am, just talking your ear off.” 

“Waverly.” They both heard a cool voice call from the other side of the diner, both their attentions shifting to the woman poking her head out the kitchen door, “I need your help out the back. Now.” 

“That would be my sister Wynonna, and also my queue to go,” Waverly said sheepishly after Wynonna had disappeared as soon as she had appeared, “Sorry, I should have taken your order by now instead of telling you about my non existent problems. You’re just strangely easy for me to talk to and I don’t find that a lot.”

“Me either,” Nicole answered seriously with wide eyes, “I don’t even know what I want yet so you couldn’t have taken my order.”

“Okay, well I’ll be right back then,” Waverly gave her a wink that would have rattled her knees if she had been standing, “Don’t go anywhere.” 

Nicole didn’t get to utter another word before the other girl was on the other side of the room and pushing heavily into the swinging kitchen door. Nicole looked down to the menu, trying to focus her thoughts on the words in front of her but being unable to do a thing except question why the most popular girl in school was being so sweet and so down to earth with her. 

She didn’t have much time to think of anything else before a different notepad was slammed down against the table, making Nicole jump once more as she looked up to see Waverly’s sister, Wynonna standing in front of her with a forced smile on her face. 

“So what are you having, red?” 

“Red?” Nicole raised her eyebrows, looking over Wynonna’s shoulder, “Did you just call me red?”

“I did and I will do it again unless you tell me what you want to order?” Wynonna spoke sharply, a heavy look of disinterest on her face, “So what will it be, valued customer?”

“Uh…just the grilled cheese,” Nicole ordered the first thing that came to her brain, wondering how she received such different reactions from the Earp sisters, “And I’ll just stick with the water.”

“Fabulous,” Wynonna rolled her eyes with a sigh, turning to walk away before pausing; clearly running through something in her mind, “You’re new here and I get that but let me give you some advice.”

“Okay…” Was all Nicole could pull from her mouth. 

“My sister is very sweet, much sweeter than I will ever be but if you deal with her then you have to deal with me,” Wynonna said very seriously, her icy stare a clear tactic to put a stop to the chemistry that flowed between the two in conversation, “Words carry some weight around here, they don’t mean crap to me but apparently, the dumb people of Purgatory would rather believe a lie than what is in front of them. I know you’re new and you probably mean well but she’s an Earp; we both know you have enough to deal with moving here so recently so my suggestion is just to steer clear. Got it?” 

“I mean…I think so.” Nicole responded slowly as she watched the seriousness on Wynonna’s face, wondering if at any point she would reveal she was joking but that moment never came. She actually had no idea what Wynonna was talking about, she couldn't wrap her head around it even if she wanted to but something told Nicole just to agree in the hopes that the elder Earp sister would leave her without another word. 

Nicole didn’t see Waverly again that night, eating her grilled cheese and leaving without laying an eye on the other girl until the next day at school. She found herself with company during her lunch, Waverly sitting at her table with the entire school’s eyes on the pair as they watched on curiously. The most popular girl in school was sitting with the new girl who was considered an outcast immediately on arrival, with a smile on her face and a sparkle in her eyes. 

They saw each other at school every day for the next 2 weeks, Nicole feeling her outer shell slowly peeling away to reveal her true self; which was something she had fought for so long to stay hidden. There was something about the cheerful, positive, beautiful brunette that made her want to reach for more but a voice in the back of her head always stopped her when she was in conversation with Waverly; slowly backing off when she thought she was giving off too much information. 

Wynonna’s words echoed through Nicole’s head with every interaction, her warning finally clicking upon learning of the so called ‘Earp curse’ after overhearing a conversation between two members of the track team after the homestead had been targeted by vandals. She kept that piece of information to herself, tucking it away until she was able to speak to the youngest Earp alone; whenever that would be. Nicole let out a sharp exhale when her English teacher paired them together for a project worth 20% of their grade; meeting eyes with the brunette after the announcement in class who looked puzzled at the decision. The redhead’s hands became warm, her palms sweaty as she rubbed them against her jeans; knowing that if she were to click her fingers they would easily produce a mighty spark. 

She watched all the other students leave the room with haste, the teacher following quickly until she was left alone in the room with Waverly; who sheepishly smiled and looked down to her books still in front of her. 

“I guess everyone else doesn’t have to go to work tonight and they actually want to get out of here,” Waverly said almost quietly as she looked, around the empty room before her eyes landed on Nicole, “I hope you’re okay being stuck with me.” 

“I think I should be saying that to you,” Nicole responded with a shake of her head, “You’re an honours student.”

“I think you’re smart enough to be one too but you just got here,” Waverly shrugged with a small smile as she started packing her books up slowly, “So when should we start this? I’m not working tomorrow night, so if you’re free I’m all yours.” 

“You know I’m free,” Nicole scoffed playfully, “Your place or mine? Or do you want to go to the diner?” 

“I definitely don’t want to go to the diner if I don’t have to and I would have it at the homestead but I think we’ll be better off going to your house if you don’t mind,” Waverly explained with a furrowed brow, “We're still fixing up the house after it was trashed so the homestead isn't the best place for our thinking hats.” 

“Okay, my house it is under the condition that you answer my question,” Nicole offered after a small pause in conversation, “Is that because of Wynonna?” 

“Well she does cause the most trouble out of everyone I know, so probably.” 

“No, I wasn't asking if it happened because of Wynonna. I mean is it just because no one goes to the homestead and Wynonna wouldn’t let you invite me over anyway.” 

“What are you talking about?” Waverly raised both eyebrows, surprise and confusion in her tone.

“You’re sister is super protective and I don’t blame her after what I hear some of the kids say in this school about a supposed family curse,” Nicole said slowly, watching for Waverly’s reaction, “But when she spoke to me at the diner she told me that you had enough going on without me; which I guess she’s right.” 

“You’ve heard about the Earp curse?” The brunette questioned, crossing her arms loosely in a defensive stance, “I thought maybe I could make a friend for once without them hearing about my family. Who told you about that?”

“I heard someone talking about it at track but I know how much truth there are to what people say sometimes,” Nicole shook her head, holding her hands out in front of her, “Listen, I don’t care about any of that so if Wynonna is having people over then we can definitely do it at my place.” 

“I don’t know why Wynonna would have said for you to stay away from me, but I’m sorry,” Waverly offered calmly with a shake of her head, “My sister has always been over protective but that’s really no excuse.”

“It’s fine, I don’t blame her for saying that,” Nicole responded with honesty as she felt her mask slip, quickly mentally adjusting herself to prevent it from falling any further, “Anyway, I’m happy for you to come to mine so it doesn’t even matter.”

“If I come over, will you let me explain the Earp curse to you?”

“You really don’t have to do that Waverly,” The redhead shook her head, “I don’t need an explanation when I know kids just make up crap. I mean what about the stuff they said about me?” 

“This is different,” Waverly’s voice ducked to just above a whisper, “But I want to explain, so you hear it from me.”

“Okay, sure.” Nicole raised an eyebrow curiously.

“And the whole Wynonna not letting anyone onto the homestead isn’t quite true,” The Earp sister tried to reason, “I mean she lets certain people on there but the land is one of the last things that belong to our family so she is super protective.” 

“Seems to be a running theme.” Nicole nodded, a small sigh escaping her lips as she looked around the empty room.

“She is but trust me, it’s going to make a whole lot more sense when I can explain a few things to you,” Waverly replied as the smallest of smiles pulled on the corners of her lips, “So what time should I come by?” 

“Maybe give me an hour and you can come whenever you want?” 

“Why don’t you give me your phone so I can send myself a text or something so we have each other’s numbers and you can tell me when to come by?” The brunette suggested smartly, pausing as she saw a frown on Nicole’s face, “What?”

“Oh, I don’t really have a phone.” Nicole said sheepishly, wondering how she was going to explain the fact that it was far too risky for her to have a phone that she could be tracked from without actually explaining that fact. 

“You don’t really have a phone?” Waverly’s tone and expression changed to confusion once more, “You do have one or you don’t?” 

“I don’t have a phone,” Nicole shrugged, stopping her sentence quickly, “I don’t really need it.”

“You don’t really need it?” Waverly chuckled, “Are you a robot or something or are you really not from Chicago?” 

“No, I’m not a robot and I am from Chicago but I just don’t keep a phone on me because I don’t really need it,” Nicole responded bluntly, “I know it’s weird but that’s just how I am.”

“You’re a real mystery, Haught,” Waverly sighed loudly, shaking her head before handing the redhead her notebook, “Why don’t you write down your address for me and I’ll be there in 2 hours.” 

“Okay,” Nicole spoke hesitantly; catching herself let her guard down in allowing Waverly to see where she was staying. On one hand, she knew better but on the other hand she felt something for Waverly that she couldn’t quite piece together yet and if she wanted to appear normal; she needed to try to blend in, “Here.”

“Do you want me to bring anything?” 

“Just yourself,” Nicole shook her head quickly, taking a small step away from the other woman, “I guess we have a bit to talk about tonight.” 

“I guess we do,” Waverly gave her a not so subtle wink as Nicole continued to back away slowly, “I’ll see you soon.” 

“You will.” Nicole muttered, feeling her fingers tingle as the heat rose in her body. 

She was going to be in danger if she couldn’t complete something as simple as making friends with someone in her new location. Nicole didn’t want to admit it but attaching herself to the most popular girl in school was probably going to work out in her favour; even if she wasn’t doing it on purpose. Waverly seemed to have a gift for turning Nicole’s life upside down and she had a feeling that would continue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll just wait nervously to see if anyone actually reads this... 
> 
> if it's terrible, I'm sorry. If it's okay, I hope you enjoyed the first part.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!  
> Thank you to everyone who was kind enough to send me a review! Sorry this has taken so long to post. I've currently worked 84 hours since last Monday with the first international match of the summer starting last Thursday and I've got another 2 days of work before I get a day off so I've been a little tired! Let me know what you think of this one! This is a pretty big chapter to make up for the fact that this took so long.

Nicole stood at her front door, her back facing out towards the winding path that lead to the small cabin like apartment she had rented out from someone she had met along the way; someone powered like her. She had rushed home from school, trying to make the messy house as redeemable as possible for when the youngest Earp, the most popular girl in school, the head cheerleader arrived at her doorstep. Nicole heard a car engine hum quietly towards her, turning quickly to pull back a curtain slightly to peak outside through the darkness.

Her fingers twitched beside her, flames hovering over her hands occasionally before she shook them away; involuntarily sparking her ability as she waited on edge. She half expected the police or government officials to storm into her cabin at any moment; cuffing the young woman and pulling her away to a fate that she would need to be resigned to. Nicole had been purposefully alone ever since things started to get really bad but it kept her alive, she just wasn’t sure that was the best tactic in a small town. It might not have been that fact that was nagging at her, pulling at her like a small child; it might have been the fact of Waverly Earp capturing her attention so dangerously.

As her mind continued to tick, she heard a quiet tap on her door, jumping and cursing to herself quietly for allowing a distraction to pull her away from her focus. She steadied herself before turning to face the door, her forehead resting on it silently as she listened outside.

“Nicole, it’s Waverly,” She heard the other woman call softly through the door, “God, now I’m definitely sure I have the wrong address.”

“You don’t,” Nicole responded as she opened the door slowly, not being able to help the smile on her face as she saw Waverly with a pile of books in her arms, “Come in.”

“And I thought I lived out of the way,” Waverly chuckled quietly, stepping inside the cabin and looking around, “This is cozy, I like it and all but how do you and your parents all live in here?”

“Oh, no… it’s just me here,” Nicole shook her head, closing the door behind Waverly and reaching to take some books from her arms, their hands touching briefly,

“My parents don’t live here.”

“Seriously?” Waverly questioned with a cocked eyebrow, “You don’t live with your parents?”

“Surely you heard that rumour.” The redhead challenged, placing the books down on the table.

“Oh, I mean I totally did but I also didn’t think that was true,” The brunette responded as she looked around the cabin once more, “I like it in here though.”

“You don’t have to say that,” Nicole’s lips pulled into a smirk, watching Waverly as she moved towards the fireplace, “It’s not in the best shape but it’s a roof over my head.”

“No, I actually like it,” Waverly reassured the other girl, running her hand over the wooden arch over the fireplace, “It kind of like embraces you, god knows sometimes I think the homestead is way too big.”

“You do?”

“All the time,” Waverly replied quickly before turning to watch Nicole with curious eyes, “I had no idea that you actually lived alone.” 

“I do,” Nicole spoke quietly and simply, “I thought we could just get a start on this out here and I can make us some food if you’re hungry?”

“I am a bit,” Waverly just continued to eye Nicole, her lips curling back into a soft smile, “You know, you’re not like anyone I’ve ever met.”

“I believe that,” Nicole laughed with a shake of her head, “But is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“It’s definitely a good thing,” Waverly replied almost instantly, “What’s it like living by yourself?”

“It’s fine, I don’t really notice it,” The redhead responded as casually as she could, taking a few steps closer to Waverly, “Should we get started? 

“Why?”

“Why should we get started?” Nicole asked with a puzzled expression, running a quick hand through her shoulder length, red hair, “I mean we have this due pretty soon so we probably don’t want to waste time.”

“No, why do you live on your own?” Waverly pressed curiously, following Nicole’s lead to take a few steps towards the other girl and stopping as they were a few feet apart, “How do you not notice it?”

“Okay, so maybe I do notice it and sometimes it does suck coming home to an empty cabin but that was their choice,” Nicole reasoned quietly, her eyes dropping to her hands in front of her, “It’s a long story but I don’t talk to my parents anymore; which I know sounds really weird for a girl who just turned 18 but that’s my situation.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why don’t you talk to them?” Waverly followed up inquisitively, “I mean would you consider contacting them? I don’t mean to pry but I just think if you have your parents around then if you can have a relationship with them then you should.”

“I don’t want to contact them and I’m not sure I ever will again because my parents don’t accept me for who I am,” Nicole muttered, feeling the heat rise in her body as she rubbed her hands together distractedly, “They basically kicked me out for something that I can’t help and when they looked at me I could tell they thought I was a burden so I just decided I had to make my own way.”

“Nicole, that’s horrible,” Waverly took a few steps towards the other girl, reaching out to place a gentle hand on her forearm, “So they kicked you out just because you were gay?”

“How do you know I’m gay?” Nicole’s eyes widened, her gaze now firmly on the soft expression sitting on Waverly’s face, “God, people in this town talk a lot.”

“It’s Purgatory, people have nothing better to do,” Waverly rolled her eyes, her thumb gently rubbing the redhead’s forearm as she kept contact, “And don’t worry, I don’t really believe in labels myself; if anything I think it just makes you more interesting.”

“Well I’m glad to hear that,” Nicole furrowed her eyebrows, her heart beating rapidly at the touch of the other girl but also over the fact that thankfully she mistook her confession for the intolerance of her sexuality, “But I decided it would be easiest to find my own way so I found a school somewhere far away from them that would be interested in a scholarship for me and here I am.”

“I’m so sorry that they didn’t accept you for who you are,” Waverly’s hand closed over Nicole’s forearm, giving it a gentle squeeze, “You deserve way more than that.”

“It’s okay, Waves, honestly.”

“Waves?” Waverly raised her eyebrows but her tone indicating approval, “You know, I only let people I really like call me that.”

“Sorry, it kind of slipped out,” Nicole responded as she looked down to Waverly’s hand that was unmoving on her arm; exhaling shakily as her thumb once more traced comforting circles against her skin, “I’ve heard a few people at school call you that.”

“It’s okay, it’s a good thing I really like you already,” Waverly exhaled shakily as she spoke, swallowing thickly as she realized just how close they were standing and how focused Nicole was on her hand, “I like it coming from you.”

“Maybe..maybe we should actually start on our project?” Nicole suggested weakly, not wanting to lose contact but knowing it was probably best to, “I mean it is worth a lot of our grade.”

“I wouldn’t want you kicked out of school because of your grades,” Waverly nudged Nicole lightly, lingering momentarily before breaking contact from the other girl and moving towards the table, “You’re right though, we should get started before I talk your ear off.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t mind.”

Nicole and Waverly worked through their project, finding it easy to bounce ideas off each other so quickly. As they worked silently on their parts, Nicole found her eyes wandering to Waverly who was chewing on the lid of her pen as she processed what was in front of her. She sighed quietly, trying to focus on her work like they had been doing for an hour but suddenly the thoughts of the brunette who had been nothing but sweet to her since she had arrived just became too cumbersome. There was something about Waverly that seemed familiar but it wasn’t anything that Nicole could put her finger on; it was rare for her to find someone she felt she could really connect with because she went out of her way to do the exact opposite.

“If you keep looking at me, I’m going to think that there’s something wrong with me,” Waverly spoke quietly, her voice husky from being quiet for so long, “You okay?”

“I just realised that I talked all about myself before and you didn’t tell me anything,” Nicole responded quietly, her eyes returning to her book in front of her, “And you don’t need to tell me about the Earp curse because clearly by what you told me, people just do nothing but talk here.”

“But a lot of what they talk about seemed to be true,” Waverly challenged jokingly, “Besides, I’m sure your life is a lot more interesting than mine.”

“Try me,” Nicole shrugged with a small smile, “It sounds to me like you have a lot to tell.”

Waverly gave a labored smile, sighed quietly and running a hand through her hair; the intensity in her eyes sending shivers down Nicole’s spine.

“So I don’t live with my parents either, we have that in common but I think we’re in a different situation,” Waverly confessed slowly, seeing the surprise on Nicole’s face, “My mom didn’t stick around after I was born, she decided she had too many responsibilities so she just decided to pack up and leave. It was just Wynonna, my dad and my Aunt Gus, who owns the diner, living in the homestead for a while and things were pretty good. My dad passed away when I was young, I remember everything but it was quite a while ago.”

“So that’s why you said it was important to have a relationship with your parents if I could.”

“Yeah but after you told me they kicked you out because you were gay, I think you did the right thing by leaving,” Waverly’s eyebrows furrowed, her expression shifting slightly as she focused on Nicole, “Wynonna left after my dad died, she was gone for a long time because she just couldn’t handle the fact that daddy was gone and how it happened was just such a freak accident that we both witnessed.”

“God, I’m so sorry.” This time it was Nicole who reached over the table, taking Waverly’s hand in hers to try and comfort the woman in front of her that she found herself becoming attached to.

“God had nothing to do with it,” Waverly muttered with a bitter tone, “She only recently came back and I love my sister to death; more than anything but we’re still trying to repair our relationship on top of trying to get to know each other as adults or almost adults in my case.”

“So is that what people are talking about when they say the Earp curse?” Nicole questioned seriously, “Because that’s just cruel if that’s the case.”

“And people saying you’re from Gingertown isn’t?”

“I mean it is, but at least it was kind of funny,” Nicole responded as a quiet chuckle escaped her lips, “What they’re saying about your family, after everything that you’ve been through isn’t in the slightest.”

“I guess it’s not but the Earp curse is more than that,” Waverly said truthfully, her eyes shifting to their joined hands as her lips pulled back into the smallest of smiles, “You have the warmest hands; remind me to keep you around for winter.”

“I’ll do that,” Nicole nodded, her chest tightening as she felt the gravity of Waverly pulled her in further, “I guess I’m just really warm blooded.”

“I guess you are,” Waverly responded, tracing her fingers on her other hand over the skin on the back of Nicole’s hand, “The Earp curse is attached to anything bad that’s happened to our family and the Earp name carries a lot of bad luck and a lot of burdens. This town is ancient and our family has been here ever since it was built so there’s a lot of stigma that comes with my name.”

“But you seemed to have beaten that being the most popular girl in school,” Nicole’s hair on the back of her neck stood up as Waverly’s gentle touch shot down all the way to her toes, “I mean the people here all love you.”

“They love what being around me can do for them, this is a small town and a lot of people peak in high school but I’m not interested in any of that,” Waverly spoke honestly and truthfully with her eyes steadily focused on Nicole’s hand, “Don’t get me wrong, I like it and I can’t pretend that I don’t but these aren’t going to be the best years of my life; I can see well passed high school and well passed Purgatory.”

“Where do you want to go if you want to leave Purgatory?”

“I don’t know, Chicago is looking pretty good right now if that’s where you came from,” Waverly joked lightly, an awkward smile on her face, “I guess I shouldn’t complain so much with what’s happening around the country at the moment, at least it’s relatively quiet here.”

“That’s kind of what I like about this place,” Nicole admitted with a nod, “I’m sorry about your dad, Waves, that must have been horrible.”

“Thank you,” Waverly said sincerely as she slowly let go of the redhead’s hand, “And it was horrible and I know this is super cliché but we do what we can to keep his memory alive.”

“That’s a good way of thinking about it.” Nicole responded quickly, her hand feeling cold where Waverly had been touching earlier.

After a few more hours and several more conversations, Waverly signaled that she needed to go home and Nicole reluctantly began walking her out to her car. It was a warm night, the clouds in the distance threatening to break the humidity with a storm on the horizon. The brightness of the moonlight left just enough darkness for them to see the thousands of stars in the galaxy above them. Nicole folded her arms loosely against her chest, the only way to keep her hands from feeling the need to reach out and take Waverly’s; which was something entirely new to her.

She heard alarm bells ringing loudly through her ears, the danger of connecting with someone was becoming extremely real to her like she hadn’t expected. There was something about Waverly, something defiant and strong but also vulnerable that Nicole could see under the layers of sweetness and light-heartedness that made the redhead want to confide in the other girl but she knew she would be stupid to. After all the work she had done to survive, no matter how she thought Waverly’s views were, she couldn’t risk herself for someone she thought she could develop strong feelings for.

“You’re stuck in your thoughts again there,” Waverly spoke softly, gently enough so that she didn’t startle Nicole, “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” Nicole responded immediately, shaking her head through her words, “I’m sorry, it’s not on purpose.”

“You don’t have to apologise,” Waverly said as they stopped at her car, the brunette leaning her back against the jeep, “You know, you’re really timid for someone who shouldn’t be.”

“Someone who shouldn’t be?” The redhead asked, feeling her heart beat quicken under the gaze of the smaller woman.

“Do I really have to explain to you what you should already know?” She shook her head slowly, licking her lips impulsively, “You’re funny, you’re sweet, smart, athletic, really beautiful and I know you’re strong so I don’t know why you’re so timid because I don’t think that’s how you actually are.”

“You don’t?” Nicole tucked her hair behind her ears, her voice rasping as it escaped from her throat.

“I really don’t and I think what happened with your parents made you think you’re way smaller than you really are. You could be a force to be reckoned with, Nicole Haught.” Waverly responded with a simple shrug, adjusting her bag strap on her shoulder, “Thanks for tonight, I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“You will.”

“Should we work on this again tomorrow night?” The brunette asked, a hint of hope in her voice.

“I can’t, I would love to but we have the first track meet of the year,” Nicole replied shaking her head, a regretful look on her face, “Maybe Wednesday night?”

“I’m working but maybe you can come by and keep me company for a while?” The youngest Earp asked optimistically before a yawn took over, “But I’m sure you have better things to do.”

“I’ll definitely be there,” Nicole responded immediately after she finished talking, “I can’t have you being bored at work and having no one to talk to.”

“Exactly,” Waverly grinned as she opened her car door, “Thanks for having me over.”

“You’re welcome.” The redhead mumbled as Waverly closed her door, the engine starting loudly as she received a wave from the other woman before she slowly disappeared down the long, winding driveway.

Nicole stood with her hands on her hips as she listened to the car driving out earshot. She took a good look around her front yard, the moon illuminating the area enough through the clouds for her to roughly see anything or anyone that may have been watching her. She heard thunder rumble in the distance, taking that as a sign to move inside so she did just that.

The redhead stood with her back to the door her hands in front of her with her palms facing upwards as flames danced along the surface of her skin. Her eyebrows furrowed as she watched distractedly, her gift turned curse being something that she worked extremely hard to control. What she was born with prevented anyone from seeing who she was and there was going to come a point with Waverly that she was going to get frustrated with her so Nicole would have to push her away in order to survive. That’s what always happened, that’s what had to happen in order to protect not just herself but Waverly too.

She sighed angrily, shaking the fire from her hands and pushing herself from the door. As much as she wanted to be safe and stay out of trouble, she longed for real relationships, something she hadn’t ever been able to establish. Waverly presented her with an opportunity but she also presented her with a problem, one that she had a feeling would come to a head.

Two days later, she found herself exhausted, standing in front of her open locker after a busy track meet and a few rough night’s sleep she didn’t have many other thoughts than her bed. If she had been honest with herself, she spent more time thinking about Waverly Earp than she did about anything else through her restless nights. She spotted Waverly in the bleachers at the track meet with a few of her friends, keenly watching the redhead as she competed and offering her a wink that Nicole though would make it difficult to run once she gained her attention. Nicole knew that the other students were taking notice to their sudden friendship, her friends looking slightly perplexed as she waved happily and winked towards the other woman.

She exhaled slowly as the conversations continued around her, resting her arm against the locker beside her and shaking her head from her thoughts. Nicole felt herself being watched, glancing over her shoulder to see the brunette herself walking in her direction with her friends, wearing her cheerleading uniform; something that she hadn’t seen before. Waverly caught Nicole’s glance, shyly tucking hair behind her ear as her smile reached her eyes and she waved to the other girl happily. Nicole was about to return the gesture, finding herself powerless not to smile as widely as she could when she heard collective gasps from the students around her.

Nicole turned her head, a chill rippling through her body instantly as she felt the air leave her lungs. Two police officers and one man dressed in a back suite walked down the hallway, directly towards Nicole who felt her legs free in place. Nicole knew exactly what was going on, she had seen it so many times before; they had identified a powered civilian and they had come to take them away. She swallowed thickly as her brain began to calculate the best way to escape the situation alive, without hurting any of the students inside the school; especially Waverly Earp who was so close to her. Their loud footsteps echoed through her ears as if everything else had disappeared from the hall; she glanced back to Waverly who had become a shade or two more pale than she had been before.

It puzzled Nicole, which she knew she would never find out why because she was about to be taken into custody but she wasn’t sure what gave her away. She closed her locker quickly, her hands curling into fists by her side; making the decision that if she was going to get taken then it wasn’t going to be quietly. Her fingers tingled as she waited, her heart beating out of her chest as the men were only a few feet away from her; closing her eyes momentarily only to open them when she felt one of the officers brushing passed her.

A numbness covered her body as she opened her eyes once more only to see the three men continue to walk passed her and down the hall. Her chest rose and fell quickly as she struggled to catch her breath, looking to Waverly who looked as if she had seen a ghost. Nicole knew she looked visibly shaken but she knew exactly why; what she didn’t know was why Waverly looked almost as worried as she did. The other woman looked as if she wanted to be in the same hole that Nicole wanted to swallow her up at that point.

The redhead did the only thing she could whilst all eyes were on the men down the hall, she pushed off her shaky legs and moved to meet Waverly in the hall. She took Waverly’s wrist gently and pulled her around the corner and through an open door, closing it behind them and leaning against it as her chest heaved once more.

The brunette stood in front of her, her eyes wide but her breathing had calmed until they both realized that they were now standing only inches apart.

“I’m sorry, I hope I didn’t startle you,” Nicole’s voice scraped through her throat, “I just felt like I couldn’t breathe and you looked like you felt the same." 

“This keeps happening, it happens more and more every month,” Waverly’s voice was soft but extremely unsteady, “This place is supposed to safe for students, instead they’re getting ripped out of their classes and taken away from their friends, their families and they’re never seen again.”

“So I guess Purgatory isn’t so far removed from everything as it turns out?” Nicole asked softly, shaking her head as her eyes searched the sincerity of Waverly’s words and she couldn’t fault her.

“It used to be,” Waverly responded sadly, cutting down the minuscule distance between the two to take Nicole’s hand loosely in her own, “Thank you, I needed to get away from that because they’ll bring whoever they’re after through the hall on the way out.”

“I thought the Sherriff here didn’t care about having powered people here?”

“How did you know what Nedley is like?” Waverly stiffened, her eyebrows furrowed but keeping her contact with Nicole’s hand.

“I did some…research I guess, before I came here,” Nicole explained dangerously, but still vaguely, “I wanted to know what I was coming into.”

“Nedley has been pressured by these government jerks and he’s tried to stop them but he can’t,” Waverly responded with a shake of her head, “I don’t know if I should be saying this but you have this weird ability to make me feel safer than I have here for a long time.”

“What are you talking about?” Nicole asked in confusion, ducking her head to keep her eye contact with Waverly as her eyes dropped slowly.

“There’s just…there’s been something happening here for a while and it just feels like it’s all bubbling up to explode,” Waverly responded quietly, swallowing thickly before continuing, “I can just see the Purgatory I love slow turning into something I hate. These people don’t deserve to be hunted, if they just want to live peacefully then they should be left alone.”

“If only there were more Waverly Earp’s in the world.” Nicole mumbled, reaching her free hand up to softly push some loose hair behind the brunette’s ear.

Nicole’s heartbeat didn’t have the chance to slow between the incident in the hallway and the closeness of the other woman. Waverly’s eyes flickered down to Nicole’s lips and for the first time, the redhead knew that Waverly was having the same thoughts as she was.  
Her thoughts were interrupted by the bell, echoing so loudly that the two women jumped; slowly letting go of each others hands.

“I should get to class, you should too,” Waverly’s voice broke through the silence following the bell, “They’ll do a head count and that’s how they’ll figure out who was taken.”

“That’s awful.” Nicole’s stomach churned as she thought of the fact that no one would even know or care if she had been taken and she wouldn’t want her parents to have the pleasure of finding out.

“Yeah, it is,” Waverly agreed, “Come by the diner tonight, okay? I could use the company.”

“I’ll be there.” The redhead said simply, offering a weak smile; turning to a frown as soon as Waverly disappeared out the door.

Nicole struggled to catch her breath, it certainly hadn’t been the closest of calls for her but for the first time she felt as if she was powerless to fight back because she didn’t want to be seen as a danger and she didn’t want to be seen as a problem.

\---

The rest of the day dragged for Nicole, her mind in other places than at school but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what exactly she was focusing on. Her mind was bouncing from thought to thought, most of her thinking coming back to the fact that she knew Waverly was hiding something. She trusted Waverly, she thought she could read the brunette but it was obvious with how she acted that she had something going on under the surface because she was almost as scared as Nicole when those men came into the school.

Did she somehow know that Nicole was powered? Is that why she continued to reiterate the fact that she supported people who were powered or was she just telling it like she felt? Was she scared that her outward opinion was going to get herself in trouble or had she done something to cause a stir with the local officials so much so that they wanted to scare her? Was someone in her family powered and was she hiding them? That made sense as to why she was so supportive but also frozen with fear as the agent came to collect someone? Or, what seemed the most unlikely to Nicole yet still possible; was Waverly powered herself?

Nicole usually found herself being very aware of the fellow powered individuals and Waverly didn’t strike her as someone who would be powered. Waverly was in plain sight far too well, she had far too much exposure for her to be like Nicole. Whatever she was hiding, whatever was going on, she was going to try  
She stood by the door after entering the diner, it was almost empty besides a few couples and one family sitting in what she now considered her usual booth. Waverly was standing in front of her as soon as she pushed open the door, all the worry and stress on her face from the last time the redhead saw her was gone and it was replaced by her usual cheer and enthusiasm.

“Your usual booth has been taken but I have an even better one waiting for you,” Waverly said with a subtle wink and a grin as she stood in front of Nicole, “Are you feeling a little better?”

“To be honest, I’m not totally sure,” Nicole responded, rubbing her neck, “It was pretty confronting.”

“It always is the first time you see that,” Waverly offered sympathetically, “Come on, I’ll get you to your booth and we’ll get you something to eat.”

“Your sister here?” Nicole glanced over Waverly’s shoulder towards the kitchen.

“Nope, Wynonna is out and so is Gus,” Waverly responded with a challenging expression, “I’m it besides the chef. There’s nothing happening in here tonight so it’s just me.”

“What if it gets busy?”

“Why do you think I asked you to come keep me company?” Waverly responded jokingly, giving the redhead a playful shove, “Wynonna’s bark is way worse than her bite, okay?”

“Well, she barked pretty fiercely so I would hate to see what her bite is.” Nicole’s eyes widened, shaking her head slowly.

“Wynonna doesn’t trust anyone new but I trust you so that should count for something with her,” Waverly shrugged off Nicole’s concern before gesturing to the booth nearest the back of the house, “I didn’t get to really thank you for pulling me aside this afternoon, watching that happen is always all kinds of stressful.”

“So that happens often?” Nicole furrowed her brows with a shake of her head, “They just march into the school and you never see students again?”

“People are basically being brainwashed into thinking that their neighbours and kids are a huge danger to society, when they’re not,” Waverly responded in a hushed tone, looking around the diner, “And no one really talks about it much so maybe if we want to have this conversation we have it once everyone is gone.”

“Okay,” Nicole spoke with defeat in her tone, watching the concern in Waverly’s face as her eyes landed back on her own once she sat down at her table, “I guess I’ll just get the grilled cheese please, maybe I should get some vegetables or something.”

“You don’t live with your parents and you want to eat vegetables?” The brunette joked lightly, “Surely that’s unheard of.”

“Someone’s got to be responsible.” Nicole joked weakly, the smile never quiet reaching the rest of her face; causing Waverly to sigh deeply.

“You’re really stressed out about today, huh?”

“It was just…I wasn’t expecting it and I wasn’t expecting it in school,” Nicole responded honestly with a furrowed brow, “This isn’t what I came here for.”

“And what did you come to Purgatory for, Nicole Haught?” Waverly challenged lightly with an expectant look.

“I came for a fresh start, away from my parents and away from all the crap going on in the world,” Nicole shrugged, looking down to her hands as they fiddled with each other, “Honestly, I don’t know what I expected and I don’t know why I’m so disappointed.”

“I do,” The brunette spoke quickly, reaching down to place her hand on Nicole’s, “Purgatory looks nice for a while on the outside until you see it’s just as ugly as anywhere else on the inside, which is something that I was trying to keep away from you for as long as I could.”

The familiar sound of the bell filled the air, an order up from the Chef made Waverly jump in her place, closing her eyes momentarily after realizing that the sound was. She gave Nicole an apologetic smile, giving her hand a quick squeeze before leaving the redhead’s side on the promise of returning soon.

Nicole spent her evening in the diner with Waverly, mostly trying to do her homework but only finding herself distracted by the other girl for a majority of the night and she wasn’t even bothered. Something about Waverly pulled and dragged her in, capturing her attention and not allowing it to be regained but she somehow felt okay with that.

A voice in the back of her mind nagged violently, knowing that neither of them had been completely honest with each other. Nicole knew her reasons and she could only hope that Waverly’s were self preservation or preservation for someone she knew or loved. She wanted to push that voice aside, she wanted to allow herself to feel what she was feeling but that voice had been the one thing that had kept her alive for so long so she owed it to herself to pay attention.

By the end of the night, it was still outside and a chill filled the air as the wind lightly blew through the town but Nicole still felt like something wasn’t right. Her hands twitched by her sides as she stood by Waverly who was locking up the front door of the diner, turning around with a winning grin once the task was completed. She tucked her hands in her pockets after shifting her hair behind her ears as it drifted in the wind softly, moving to stand next to Nicole before they began walking to their cars slowly.

“Thanks for staying with me all night, it would have sucked locking up by myself,” Waverly broke the eerie silence that surrounded them, “You’re really good at keeping me company.”

“I’m not sure why, but I’m glad,” Nicole shrugged, glancing around as she felt an air of what she could only describe as hostility surround them, “Do you always get left alone to lock up and leave by yourself?”

“Not often, and I can handle myself,” Waverly defended faintly, shifting to walk shoulder to shoulder with the taller redhead, “But having you around makes things a little less intimidating.”

“You can handle yourself?” Nicole chuckled quietly, “Are you a black belt in karate or something?”

“I have moves, Haught. Moves that you wouldn’t even know you’ve been hit with until you were on the ground,” Waverly teased lightly, “And maybe if you’re lucky, you’ll get to see them.”

“Yeah?” The redhead felt that now all familiar pang in her chest hit her with force and she grew anxious as they reached Waverly’s jeep, “I hope I get to, not on me though.”

“Not on you,” Waverly confirmed with a tender nudge, “I shouldn’t keep you out here longer than I already have.”

“Should we keep working on our project tomorrow night?” Nicole boldly suggested, feeling a blush slowly appear on her cheeks, “My house again?”

“I would love to, I’ve got cheer practice though,” Waverly spoke apologetically and sincerely, “But if you don’t have plans on Friday night, we could do it then?”

“You want to spend your Friday night doing our project?”

“Well, actually, I want to spend my Friday night with you,” Waverly bravely admitted, leaning back on her car and taking her hands from her pockets, “Only if you want to.”

“You know I do, Waves,” Nicole’s voice helpless, her mind still telling her there was something wrong with their surroundings but her heart pointing all of her attention towards the brunette in front of her, “We should probably go…”

“We definitely should instead of just hanging out in the carpark,” Waverly responded with a nod, her eyes flickering between Nicole’s eyes and her lips, “I’m not sure what it is about you but I could be doing homework or just standing in a carpark and be happy spending time with you.”

“I know what you mean.” Nicole exhaled shakily, being unable to help herself when her hand left her side to reach up and cup the other girls face gently in her hand.

Waverly leaned into the touch instantly, Nicole swallowing thickly as her thumb gently stroked the brunette’s chin affectionately; their faces inching together slowly as if both giving the other to pull away if that’s what either of them wanted.

A sound of footsteps crunching through dead grass at the edge of the parking lot dragged them from the moment, their attention eyes shooting in the direction across from them before they saw a dark figure appear through the brush. It was too dark to establish who it was but Nicole knew that not many people who were harmless decided to go for a late night trail walk in the middle of nowhere so she immediately stood in front of Waverly with one hand behind her to keep herself separated from the brunette and as far away from the figure as she could manage.

“Well, this seems like an entirely new development,” They heard the voice call whimsically, seeing the figure develop into a man with a white Mohawk and a large fur coat approach them slowly but fearlessly; stopping a few yards away from them, “I don’t mean to interrupt but Waverly, I didn’t know you were gay now. I haven’t seen you with this one before.”

“You know this guy?” Nicole glanced back over her shoulder to see a dominant look of anger on Waverly’s face.

“This is Bobo Del Ray, unfortunately I do know him,” Waverly mumbled, her voice growing louder as her sentence ran further, “But I don’t know why he is here.”

“You know why I am here, sweet heart,” Bobo responded with a wicked grin, his fingers twitching by his sides, “And you know I’m not going to stop following you or your sister until you just give me a chance to talk so you come with me and your friend here won’t get hurt.”

“You’re not going to hurt her.” Waverly’s voice firmed at the threat.

“Waverly isn’t going anywhere with you, she’s going home,” Nicole said with a low voice and gritted teeth, her heart racing once more for an entirely different reason,

“And you’re going to back off before I make you back off.”

“Oh my dear, you have no idea who you are dealing with,” Bobo tilted his head with a grin, “If I wanted to, I could have killed you by now but I’m feeling generous tonight so walk away and leave us to talk and I’ll let you live.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” The redhead stood firmly in her place, her hand still by her side moving out in front of her with her palm facing out, “You’re going to walk away now or you’re the one who is going to get hurt.”

“Your friend is testing my patience, Waverly,” Bobo called through gritted teeth, “Have her leave or I have her killed.”

“Nicole, go,” Waverly urged the woman in front of her, grasping the hand closest to her, “I’ll be fine, he’s not going to hurt me.”

“I’m not leaving you with whoever this guy is,” Nicole said quickly as her choices began to dwindle as the seconds passed, “I don’t care what he wants or if he says he isn’t going to hurt you.”

“I’m really not sure you understand who I am,” Bobo took a few steps forward, Nicole holding her ground steadily, “And you don’t want to find out so I suggest you just leave.”

“Nicole, I’ll be fine,” Waverly’s voice soon became desperate, which wasn’t something that the redhead missed, “Honestly, just go and I will see you tomorrow. I know Bobo, as crazy as he is, he won’t hurt me.”

“She’s right, I’m not going to hurt her because I need to talk to her,” Bobo said seriously, taking a further step towards them, “You, I have no use for though.”

“Why do you need to talk to her?” Nicole questioned quickly, looking around the car park for any other route of escape, “What can’t you say in front of me?”

“I’m not talking right now entirely for her privacy, not mine,” Bobo snapped in frustration, pausing as he watched Nicole’s eyes wander, “Now you’re really starting to annoy me if you think you’re going to just run out of here.”

“What are you going to do to stop us?”

“This, for one,” Bobo closed his fist tightly, the Shorty’s sign at the edge of the driveway groaning loudly as it became mangled instantly; his hand rising as it ripped painfully from the concrete it was grounded in to hover in place in the air, “That’s right kid, I’m one of those powered folk your parents warn you about so leave now and I won’t throw this right on top of you. Leave now or I’m going to just take Waverly and you’re going to die here in this parking lot.”

Nicole’s fingers buzzed as tingles ripped through her body, she had never been in opposition of another powered individual; she was used to fighting by their side but she wasn’t about to let the maniac get near Waverly. She didn’t understand why he wanted her and she didn’t need to be told after taking one look at him that he was dangerous and not a word could be trusted from his mouth. She closed her eyes tightly for just a moment, hoping that Waverly truly believed what she had told Nicole about powered individuals on several occasions because she didn’t see any other way out of whatever was happening.

She brought both hands in front of her before she felt the extra heat fill her arms through to her finger tips as fierce flames danced over her hands and around her palms. She heard Waverly gasp behind her, Bobo’s expression changing from cocky and angry to what looked to be an impressed smirk and wide eyes. Her chest heaved, knowing she was going against everything that had kept her free and alive for so long but she was always told by those around her that sometimes you have to expose yourself for something worthy of the cause and to Nicole; Waverly was more than that.

“Leave her alone now and I leave you alone,” Nicole responded with a shake of her head as an intense heat radiated from her palms, “I’m not someone you want to cross either, you’re not the only one here who is powered.”

“Curious and even more curious that it looks like our Waverly didn’t know,” Bobo chuckled in amusement as his eyes moved between the two, “Okay, I’ll leave for now but we’re going to talk Waverly. You know we are well over due and we have a lot to discuss.”

With that last word, the Shorty’s sign dropped to the ground with a loud crash; causing enough of a distraction for Bobo to escape the same way he entered leaving the two girls standing in the carpark alone once more. Nicole swallowed thickly, the flames dissipating on her hands until they were completely gone and with a sigh she turned back to face the brunette.

“First of all, I don’t want you to be scared of me.” Nicole’s voice shaky as she tried to push words from her mouth.

“I’m not scared of you,” Waverly’s eyebrows furrowed as she couldn’t tear her eyes away from Nicole’s hands, “I just…I had no idea…”

“I know and I know I have a lot of explaining to do but I think you do too,” Nicole looked over her shoulder, paranoia filling her mind as they stood out in the open, “But I think we need to get out of here.”

“No, you don’t need to explain anything,” Waverly explained with a shake of her head, her hands out in front of her, “It’s fine, I don’t need an explanation.”

“I feel like I should give you one,” Nicole urged gently, her chest aching as she saw the conflicted look on Waverly’s face, “But if you want to go, I’ll go.”

“No, that’s not what I want at all,” Waverly took a step forward, looking as if she were fighting the most intense internal battle, “I just wasn’t expecting this.”

“I only did that to protect you, I don’t know who Bobo Del Ray is but I wasn’t so sure he just wanted to talk to you,” Nicole responded with a shake of her head, “And I don’t know how he knows you but something tells me no one else knows that either.”

“Nicole, we don’t need to talk about this.” Waverly urged, shaking her head and placing her hands on her head.

Nicole’s mind was racing as they stood in silence outside the diner. Waverly didn’t seem scared but she also didn’t seem delighted either, there was something going on in her mind that she couldn’t quite figure out. Something made Waverly uncomfortable and Nicole wasn’t sure that it was her abilities that was causing the discomfort; she could still sense something under the surface she couldn’t pinpoint.

“I should give you an explanation.” Nicole suggested slowly, taking a step away from the other girl to give her some breathing space.

“Okay…okay,” Waverly broke the silence after an uncomfortable pause between them, “I’m not scared of you, nothing you could have done would scare me because I feel like I’ve gotten to know you over the past few weeks and I know you exposed your abilities to protect me which is huge amongst everything else.”

“He wasn’t going to leave you alone.” Nicole reasoned, her voice just above a whisper.

“No, he wasn’t because that’s just what Bobo does and you were right about no one knowing about Bobo approaching me or my sister,” Waverly continued to talk, unmoving from her place, “Bobo is one of the reasons why there are an increasing number of people getting taken away from this place. When Wynonna left, she made some not so great choices and one of those was Bobo. She was with him for a while, god knows why but she ended it a few months in and he disappeared for a long time before finally resurfacing last year and he has been trying to talk to us ever since.”

“And he just flaunts his abilities like that all the time even though people are being hunted like they are?”

Waverly was about to speak when a loud ring filled the air, the brunette’s phone sounding off loudly in her pocket. They both jumped at the sound before Waverly fished her phone out of her pocket, looking hesitantly at the screen.

“It’s just Wynonna, I’ll call her back later,” Waverly responded, declining the call and turning her attention back to Nicole, “He does just flaunt them because he doesn’t think he’s going to get caught and he gives everyone else around here a bad name. He’s a fanatic, he thinks that powered people should rule over humankind and he’s started his own little gang of merry men to try and take over the world.”

“So why did he want to talk to you then?” Nicole questioned curiously, folding her arms over her chest protectively, feeling like she was only getting half the story from the other girl.

Waverly’s phone called loudly again, the brunette began to look apprehensive as she declined the call once more and pushed her phone deep into her pocket.

“Honestly, I don’t know why but he does this every so often,” Waverly responded quickly, “Usually I’m with Wynonna but it looks like he’s moved on to trying to get me on my own.”

“Waverly, if you have to answer your phone or if you have to go then just go,” Nicole said with a quiet sigh, running her hand through her hair, “The last thing I want to do is make you uncomfortable and clearly Wynonna needs to talk to you.”

“You make me feel the complete opposite of uncomfortable and Wynonna is only calling me because I sent her a text saying was closing up and would be out soon. I wasn’t completely shocked by you being powered but I’m worried about you,” Waverly stepped forward to give up the space Nicole had given her, “Bobo is dangerous, you saw what he did to the Shorty’s sign and that was just him playing around. On top of that, you’re going to have to be even more careful with kids being taken away all the time.”

“I may not like it but I’ve gotten very good at running, Waves,” Nicole responded quietly, “I’m not going to be afraid of Bobo if he is threatening someone who can’t fight back like he can and I can escape police if I have to.”

“Is that why you came to Purgatory?”

“I came to Purgatory because I wanted to stop running, I thought was safe and I guess it was until now,” Nicole spoke awkwardly, her emotions and thoughts confused by what was happening, “I rented the cabin, I had paperwork to get into school after I found some help along the way and I have stayed as far away from Chicago as I could.”

“Did your parents really kick you out?” Waverly questioned with an unsure look on her face.

“My parents don’t know where I am and they can’t because they hated me from the moment I realized I had these abilities, even when I was young,” Nicole muttered, her eyes set firmly on the floor, “They’re the reason why I had to run in the first place; they were going to turn me in as soon as I turned 18 so I beat them to the punch and just left.”

“That’s even worse than what you told me,” Waverly’s voice deeply sympathetic but her expression was still showing confliction, “I’m sorry, that’s horrible.”

“I guess I can’t blame them that much, when I was little I first discovered my abilities when I set fire to the house and burnt it down after they were having an argument downstairs,” Nicole pulled her hands in front of her, allowing a small fire to light along her fingertips, “I’ve spent a long time learning how to control it and harness it so I can stay low and keep the people around me safe. I’m not sure I know everything I can do yet but I know enough for now and I know enough for this to only react when I want it to.”

Waverly’s phone called once more, Nicole sighing loudly at the sound as the brunette dismissed the call one more time with an apologetic look.

“I’m sorry but I should go,” Waverly spoke with furrowed brows and an unstable voice, “You should go home too.”

“Waves, I’m not dangerous,” Nicole urged the other woman to believe, shaking the flames from her hands “I would never hurt anyone and I’m not a danger to you.”

“I know you’re not,” Waverly responded seriously, her voice uncharacteristically sad, “Thank you for making Bobo leave.”

“Waverly please.” The redhead was close to begging as she pleaded with the other girl, “I feel like there is something you’re not telling me and if you’re planning on reporting me then at least have the respect of giving me the head start because you know what telling anyone is going to mean.”

“I’m not going to tell anyone about tonight but I do have to go.”

“So why does it feel like I’m never going to see you again?” Nicole questioned abruptly but bravely, stiffening her lip as she felt it waver slightly.

“You’ll see me at school tomorrow,” Waverly reassured the other girl, reaching out to give her hand a gentle squeeze before backing away towards her Jeep, “Go home, Nicole. It’s not safe out here.”

Despite what Waverly said, Nicole stood there as she watched the brunette hurry to her Jeep and leave the carpark as quickly as she had finished the conversation. Nicole wasn’t sure what to feel, she was upset that she knew something was wrong between her and Waverly, she was angry that she thought Waverly was keeping something from her and she was scared that now she had exposed herself and left herself in the open for possible capture.

Her heart felt like it was lying on the ground, thinking she had done the right thing by trying to protect Waverly but realizing that what she did only seemed to harm herself. She had survived for so long without finding the need to expose her ability to someone who wasn’t the same as her and now she was afraid that the risk of trying to protect someone she cared about was going to blow up in her face.

Waverly had spoken about powered individuals, showing a complete sympathy for them in conversations and something about the brunette made Nicole want to trust her. It was her first instinct to be drawn to and trust Waverly and as she stood in the Shorty’s carpark by herself, she could only hope that she had made the right decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think :) I will update sooner than I updated this time!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi team, thanks for your kind words on the last chapter! You will get a couple of answers here, maybe more questions but I promise everything will be explained in the next chapter as well and things will start moving.

She wasn’t surprised when she didn’t see Waverly at school for the next few days, she was disappointed that that other girl was clearly avoiding her but it wasn’t something that surprised her. After the second day Waverly had been missing from school, Nicole packed a bag in her cabin establishing an escape path should authorities approach her house to take her away. She wanted to trust that Waverly wouldn’t report her to the police and deep down she wanted to believe that the relationship, though still very brief, they had built was enough to keep the brunette on her side.

Nicole was beginning to grow paranoid, the heavy feeling of eyes on her only increasing; now having to look over her shoulder for the Government and someone like Bobo Del Ray who she had the pleasure of meeting. She didn’t regret defending Waverly; she didn’t expect anything from her after what had happened but all she was trying to do was to keep her safe. There would be worse reasons for her being captured in her mind but she wasn’t going to have her freedom taken away without a fight.

3 days after Nicole had revealed her abilities to Waverly, she saw the brunette walk through the doors of Purgatory High for the first time since everything happened. She didn’t look like herself, she looked like she hadn’t slept a second over those days Nicole hadn’t seen her. Her face was pale; her eyes were dark and her face expressionless as she moved slowly through the hallway in a simple brown sweater and high waist jeans. She looked exhausted and it was as if no one around her seemed to notice just how tired she looked because they were approaching her like nothing was different.

Nicole couldn’t take her eyes away from Waverly; cursing herself for being so drawn to the other girl. The brunette’s eyes met Nicole’s, pausing mid conversation with another cheerleader; her forced smile falling from her face to form a look of what Nicole interpreted as sympathy. The redhead’s stomach churned Waverly dropped their eye contact almost immediately after they met, continuing what she had been saying before she had seen Nicole. She could only watch as Waverly dragged her feet down the hall, walking passed her without and further acknowledgement or signal.

She slammed her locker closed in frustration, hitting it lightly with an open palm; creating a small amount of attention as the bell rang loudly through her ears. Nicole didn’t understand what was going on with Waverly and she was guessing that she wasn’t going to receive an explanation of why she wasn’t around over the last few days even though she felt as if it was granted.

The day moved quicker than Nicole could grasp, her head was spinning for the majority of it so she was unable to retain much of what she had learnt that day. Their projects were due soon, her partner nowhere to be seen in English which only made her feel worse. She worked on her part, her frustration shifting between sadness and confusion as to why Waverly was acting as if Nicole was something she needed to avoid at all costs.

Nicole decided she would skip track practice that evening, Waverly’s cheer-squad were due to be practising at the same time and she didn’t want to put herself through another opportunity for the brunette to avoid her again. She feigned an injury to her coach, opting to go home instead of staying around anymore. She didn’t want to be there any longer, she just wanted to be by herself and not have to pretend to be okay or normal because she was anything but that.

She walked through the virtually empty parking lot with her head tucked down like she always did, watching the ground below her as she heard quickened footsteps behind her. By instinct, she began to move even faster whilst at the same time pulling her hands from her pockets to ready herself for a quick defence if she needed it.

“Nicole, wait.” She heard Waverly’s trembling voice behind her.

It was enough to make her legs freeze in place, her body feeling as if it were helpless to move. She knew she was going to turn around and she knew she was going to listen because that’s just the sudden influence that Waverly had over her but she couldn’t push away the spiteful feeling that began to float its way to the surface.

“I understand if you think of me differently now, if you think I’m a freak,” Nicole muttered, turning on her heel to see her anger peel away slowly at the look of sadness on Waverly’s face, “But if you are avoiding me, you didn’t have to stay away from school for 3 days and you didn’t need to walk passed me like I wasn’t there. You don’t need to talk to me at all, I just want to ask that you don’t share what you saw or give me a heads up if you are going to.”

“I know, I owe you a huge apology and I owe you an even bigger explanation,” Waverly replied as her voice scratched against her throat, “Being away for 3 days after what you showed me was not what I wanted at all and I felt really bad for just walking passed you today. I don’t know how to do this, I’m not sure this is even a way to do this. I just…when I saw the look on your face as I came inside, I felt like I was being torn to pieces so I knew I needed to say something, anything to get your attention but if we’re going to talk, it can’t be out here.”

“So when are you going to tell me what you need to?” The redhead spoke immediately, cutting off Waverly’s next sentence, “I’ve told you everything, I’ve been honest and when I haven’t; I think you can understand why I had to hide what I did but if you want me to listen to you then I need you to start being honest with me. If you didn’t want any of what just happened, tell me why you did it?”

“You’re totally right,” Waverly’s voice only grew huskier, exhaling a shaky breath, “So let’s get out of here and talk about this tonight.”

“You’ve got practice, isn’t that where you’re supposed to be?”

“This is more important, Nicole,” Waverly responded quickly with a shake of her head “ _You’re_ more important.”

“Am I? One minute you are telling me how you support pow…people like me and then straight after I use my abilities to try and protect you, it’s like you never want to talk to me again and can’t get out of there soon enough,” Nicole paused to exhale deeply, trying to calm herself when she saw moister brimming Waverly’s eyes, “Waverly, I don’t know what this is, I don’t know what is happening between us and if there was something here; it’s okay if you have changed your mind but I just need you to tell me the truth.”

“I haven’t changed my mind, Nicole,” Waverly responded with wide eyes, taking a step towards Nicole only to pause when the other girl took the smallest of steps backwards, “There is definitely something here, I’ve felt it since the day I bumped into you at school and I don’t really know what this is either but I want to figure it out together. I just need some time to explain myself and I want to tell you whatever I can but you have to know that I’m really sorry for how I’ve handled things. I wasn’t expecting this; I wasn’t expecting you more to the point, my feelings for you.”

“If you want some time to explain, you have it,” Nicole granted almost reluctantly with a nod, “We can go to my house if we have to.”

“No, come to the homestead,” Waverly offered quickly with a slight hint of what Nicole could have considered as desperation in her eyes, “If you come to the homestead I can talk openly there, it’s not safe for either of us out here in the open and I don’t want it to have to be at your house again so I guess you’re just going to have to come to mine.”

“You don’t even let your friends go to your house.” Nicole said skeptically, her eyebrow raising slowly.

“I don’t but I think we both know that you’re becoming a bit more than that to me,” Waverly’s reply was enough to shake Nicole down to her toes, she blinked quickly as the words hit her only to shake herself clear of what she was feeling, “It’s not fair that we go back to your house when I’m the one who needs to talk and you’re going to see it at some point so I want you to come to the homestead.”

“Is your sister going to be okay with that?” Nicole pressed for information with growing frustration in her voice, “Am I even going to be allowed to step inside?”

“Wynonna isn’t going to know that you’re there before she gets home but I’ll get you in the house,” Waverly said quickly as she nodded, “Please, just come with me and I promise I will tell you whatever you want to know.”

Nicole felt that tightness in her chest once more as she stared into Waverly’s glassy eyes. She swallowed thickly as the words left the brunette’s mouth, hearing what the other woman was saying to her but having a feeling there was a message below the surface of her words.

“Okay,” The redhead spoke with a sigh, “Okay, I’ll come to the homestead.”

“Thank you,” Waverly’s voice was filled with relief and a smile was on her face for the first time since Nicole had seen her at the diner days ago, “Just follow me and we’ll take you through the back door, straight up to my room.”

“Waverly, I’m trusting you,” Nicole said almost helplessly as she resigned to the fact that the need for her to know what was happening with this girl who had grown to mean a significant amount to her outweighed her logical thinking pattern, “Please don’t make me regret that.”

“I’m not going to.”

Nicole’s body felt numb, so much so that she hardly remembered how she even got to the homestead before she was directed around the back of the house by Waverly. She pulled up quietly behind the barn, no other cars outside the house letting Nicole breathe a little easier. She wasn’t truly afraid of Wynonna, she had no real need to be but it was clear how much she meant to Waverly and even though the Earp sister didn’t seem to have much time for her; she still didn’t want to be the cause of any friction.

Waverly practically pulled Nicole into the homestead, pushing her through the door before pulling it closed quickly. She didn’t have a lot of time to take in the actual interior of the house with the youngest Earp taking her hand and tugging her up the stairs. She was only able to catch the rustic theme throughout the house and curiously noted the multiple boarded up windows lining the outside.

They only stopped moving once they were inside what Nicole guessed to be Waverly’s bedroom, the sweet scent of her perfume flooding Nicole’s senses. She felt a small smile tugging on her lips when she realised her room was exactly what she expected it to be. It was simple yet soft, butterflies on her wallpaper and the old metal bed-frame signalling to Nicole that Waverly was happy keeping the homestead exactly how she had grown up in. She did notice one of the two windows in Waverly’s room were covered as well, jagged glass on the frame indicating that they had been broken recently.

“I’m sorry I had to sneak you in,” Waverly broke the silence, running a hand through her hair before she toyed with her own fingers nervously in front of her, “Wynonna will be home soon so I’ll have to go down when she gets here but I’m hoping I can answer whatever you need to ask before then.”

“Waverly, what is going on?” Nicole questioned shortly, trying to keep her voice soft but the frustration was only building inside of her, “Why did you have to sneak me in?”

“We don’t bring anyone here because it looks a little strange with the constant repairs that seem to happen here and it’s not because it’s old,” Waverly offered awkwardly, toying with her fingers, “But firstly, I want to be honest with you and show you why no one comes here. Wynonna won’t be home for a while and everything will make more sense once I can let you know what is happening.”

“It doesn’t look like we’re going to have any time because I think that’s your sister pulling up now,” Nicole gestured to the intact window, rubbing her eyes gently, “Is it really a big deal if I’m here?”

“Oh crap sticks,” Waverly’s frustrated tone spiking, rushing to the window to see Wynonna and another man exiting a light pink car, “She’s not supposed to be home for 30 minutes at least.”

“Waverly, what is happening?” Nicole questioned impatiently but her voice still low, “Why does it matter that I’m here?”

“I’m really sorry, I know this has been really confusing and you can hate me later but I had to get you here,” Waverly spoke quickly, taking large strides towards Nicole before stopping directly in front of the redhead, “I needed you anywhere but at your cabin and figured you would be safest with me. I wanted to talk, to explain myself as best as I can because I know how frustrated you are with me and you have every right to be but I wanted to talk before any of this started to happen.”

“What is going on, Waverly?”

“I have to go downstairs, okay?” Waverly asked Nicole, without there in reality being another option; her hand reaching up to cup the redhead’s face gently, “I have to talk to Wynonna so I can handle this but I’ll come back and we’ll talk, we’ll really talk. Just you and me, Waverly and Nicole.”

“Waverly, what are you talking about?” Nicole sighed, shaking her head with disappointment and confusion until her body just froze when Waverly leaned up to place a warm, lingering kiss on her cheek.

She cursed herself for falling into the brunette’s touch as Waverly exited the room, pulling the door closed silently without anything as much as a sound before she heard footsteps descending the stairs. Nicole knew better than to stay out of a conversation that she knew was going to somehow involve her so she opened the door and stood just outside of the door frame, hearing the front door closing loudly.

“Why is Nicole Haught’s car parked badly behind our barn?!” Wynonna called loudly as Waverly reached the bottom of the steps, “You weren’t supposed to leave the house baby girl, not until tomorrow.”

“I couldn’t just stay home, this was the wrong call in the first place like I have been telling you this whole time,” Waverly’s voice was as strong and defiant as Nicole had ever heard, “She deserves much better than that, all she did was protect me from Bobo for god’s sake.”

“You don’t need protecting, you can do that yourself,” Wynonna countered swiftly, her voice hushing, “Is she in the homestead?”

“Yes and it’s going to stay that way for now.” The youngest Earp spoke confidently, her voice still smooth and assured.

“Waverly, you bringing her here, while admirable is really dumb. You know they’re going to come here when they don’t find her,” Wynonna exclaimed with a groan, “Doc, would you please talk some sense into my sister.”

“I’m not so sure I can, Wynonna,” The smooth voice, with a heavy drawl from the man she had never met before spoke, “She’s already made up her mind, it’s already done.”

“Waves, this is the only way to keep you safe and free,” Wynonna spoke, loud footsteps pacing downstairs, “All you had to do was just stay here until it was done and it would have been over.”

“No, it wouldn’t have just been over, for any of us and honestly I’m really disappointed that you just think that,” Waverly snapped quickly and heatedly, “We’re Earps, we aren’t snitches. I know that you don’t think like that and I know that’s not what you mean but where does it stop?”

“There is a difference between snitching and informing because you’re being threatened and backed into a corner,” Wynonna’s voice grew desperate and strained, “Listen, I don’t like it either. I don’t want to give them what they want and I don't want Nicole to have to pay for our mistake but I’m not sure we have too much of a choice. You have to go upstairs and send Nicole home, just let what was planned happen.”

“No, you’re not listening,” Waverly shouted furiously, “I’m not sending her anywhere because for the first time in a long time, I’ve met someone who can actually make me feel something. I’ve met someone who is a breath of fresh air around here, who doesn’t care who my family is or what I am. I can’t send her away knowing what would happen to her because I care about Nicole and I give a damn what happens to her. I just left her in the parking lot of Shorty’s because you told me that’s what was best and since then I haven’t eaten, I haven’t slept and I haven’t been able to function because I’ve felt so guilty. I love you, Wynonna and I appreciate that you are trying to protect me but you said it yourself, I can protect myself. This is my decision because it’s my fault in the first place and I’ll deal with the consequences; that’s on me.”

“Waverly, we don’t have a choice!” Wynonna shouted just as passionately, Nicole feeling the anger rising in her body as she realized she had been implicated in something that would have ended in her capture if Waverly hadn’t intervened, “If we had another choice I would take it but we don’t so I need you to trust me.”

“I hate to play devil’s advocate here but there is always another choice whether we see it or not,” Doc interjected quietly, as if being a moderator between the two, “What you have decided is most certainly a choice.”

“I don’t need you talking to me about choices, Doc,” Wynonna called in frustration, “I don’t want to do this as much as you, I actually like red but if I have to make this decision to protect you then I will!”

Nicole had heard enough, her future clearly being decided downstairs by someone she hardly knew, someone she didn’t know at all and someone she thought she could trust and it seemed like they weren’t too interested in what she had to say.

She stomped loudly, deliberately as she came down the stairs; stopping on the last step and looking at the three people who were looking at her with wide eyes.

“So how many people did you tell?” Nicole asked Waverly in a cold voice, the colour draining from the brunette’s face.

“I need you to listen to me,” Waverly responded with wide eyes, her hands up in front of herself, “I made you come here because it’s not safe for you right now at your house.”

“I want to know what’s going on and I want to know now because you’re right by the sounds of it,” Nicole spoke through gritted teeth, feeling her fingers tingle as her hands curled into a fist beside her, “But it also sounds like you’re to blame for that and I have no idea why. I have no idea why about anything because I can’t get an answer from you.”

“Miss Haught, you need to understand that none of this was done with ease.” The man named Doc said with a sad and serious expression, his hands resting on his hips  
.  
Nicole couldn’t hold herself together any longer, she could conclude that the Earps had agreed to turn her in to someone but she couldn’t gather why and she couldn’t gather why the woman she had developed feelings for had suddenly changed her mind and backed out of whatever process she had started.

She didn’t want to hold back any longer even if she could, her frustration growing by the second until flames danced over her hands by her sides; lifting one hand up to look at the flame in front of her. The next thing she heard was a loud click, looking up to see Wynonna pointing a large gun directly at her chest with a frown on her face but heavy reluctance in her eyes.

“This is a non-smoking house,” Wynonna mumbled flatly, “Put it out or I’ll do it for you.”

“Wynonna, don’t you point peacemaker at her,” Waverly spoke lowly as a warning with a shake of her head as she moved to stand in front of her Nicole, “We’re not each other’s enemy.”

“Well I’m going to need red here to calm down.” Wynonna shifted so she had a clear shot at Nicole once more.

“All I was trying to do was protect Waverly,” Nicole spoke through gritted teeth as she felt her heart sink slowly towards her feet as her gaze shifted to a shaken Waverly, “But I guess I should have known better than to trust you.”

“Nicole, I can explain everything,” Waverly pleaded unevenly, “I just need you to give me a chance to do that.”

“But you keep saying that you’re going to explain and you never do,” Nicole shook her head, her eyes stinging as she processed the situation, “And I don’t even need you to tell me that you sold me out to the cops but you could at least tell me why.”

“We don’t need to tell you anything,” Wynonna responded quickly, “Waverly just saved your ass, they’re not going to find you at home so maybe you should be a bit grateful.”

“I should be grateful?!” Nicole roared at the statement, the flames only growing and strength, “I should be grateful that you’ve turned me in but then changed your mind about it?”

“I just need you both to stop arguing so I can talk to Nicole,” Waverly shut her eyes slowly, swallowing thickly as her hand visibly started to shake in front of her, “I owe her more than an explanation.”

“What’s our explanation going to be when they show up here?” Wynonna asked slowly as her attention shifted to her sister momentarily, “What are we going to tell them?”

“Maybe I should stay, at least that way I’ll get an answer out of you both,” Nicole responded, shaking her head, “Either someone starts explaining or I’m walking out.”

“I don’t know if I can let you yet.” The regret in Wynonna’s voice was evident as she spoke but her intent was clear and her intent was to protect her sister from something Nicole didn’t understand.

“Wynonna, we cannot keep her here,” Doc’s voice was hushed, his eyes glued to Waverly, “She is no prisoner.”

“I know that,” Wynonna said with little patience towards Doc, “Have you ever thought what implication this is going to bring on us when they don’t find Nicole at her house? Has anyone thought what they are going to do to us?”

“We’ve done enough already,” Doc continued, his voice growing in strength the longer he spoke, “If Waverly wishes her to be able to go then that’s what she should do. We can deal with Black Badge if we have to.”

“I’m not doing this for fun, I don’t want anyone powered getting locked away but I swore to daddy that I would protect my sister no matter what.”

“Whatever you’re thinking, I wouldn’t,” Nicole said steadily as she looked to Waverly whose eyes were still firmly closed, her chest rising and falling rapidly, “I’m more powerful than you know.”

“I could take my chances.”

Nicole had no idea what happened next, she wasn’t sure if she would ever be able to recall. First it started with the ground vibrating below her feet subtly until she felt a buzzing in her body. It was at that point that Wynonna dropped her gun, turning around to face her sister and wrap Waverly up in her arms as tightly as she could; protecting Waverly’s face. Nicole didn’t understand why until it happened and when it happened, everything began to make a lot more sense.

The sounds of smashing glass mixed in with the scream of frustration leaving Waverly’s lips, a pressure suddenly leaving the room. It was over as quickly as it had started, glass covered the floor with some of it getting stuck in Nicole’s hair. Wynonna continued to squeeze Waverly tightly, kissing the top of her sister’s head quickly before her eyes landed on the redhead who could only watch on with an expression of shock.

Waverly was powered. Waverly was just like her.

Her ears were ringing and her heart was pounding as she was provided with even more questions than she was given answers but at least the information was had just uncovered made dots connect in her brain instantly. It took a few seconds for everything to sink in as realisations and memories flooded back to her knowing now what she did. It made sense; Waverly's standings on powered individuals, her fear when the sheriff's department had shown up at school, her shock once Nicole revealed her abilities.

There was only silence that followed Waverly’s reaction, Nicole not having the words to speak and no one else daring to. All 4 of them jumped as Wynonna’s phone rang loudly, the Earp sister reluctantly letting go of Waverly who caused a shiver to run down Nicole’s spine as she looked at the redhead with such raw emotion. It was as if Nicole was seeing Waverly for the first time again and in a lot of ways, it was just like that.

Wynonna’s conversation faded to background noise because all of Nicole’s focus was on the brunette and even if it wasn’t; her heart was beating out of her chest. Wynonna only came to her attention when she threw her phone down at the kitchen table at frustration.

“So that was Moody, he’s on his way here along with pretty much the whole of black badge in Purgatory because Nicole wasn’t at home like we said she would be and they found nothing to believe she is powered,” Wynonna’s voice was filled with dread and sympathy all rolled into one, gesturing to her sister, “So you better decide what you want to do baby girl because we have to think of a story if she’s going to go.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I’m sorry I thought even for a second it would be okay to send Black Badge to your house but you have to go before they get here or they’re going to take you,” Waverly’s voice was the softest Nicole had ever heard. Maybe it was because her ears were ringing, maybe it was because her mind was racing but she felt as if she had to strain to hear the brunette, “You’ve got to leave.”

“You haven’t told me anything,” Nicole’s voice was pained, “When you found out I was powered, why didn’t you just tell me you were too?”

“I’ve never been able to just tell someone,” Waverly’s voice just above a whisper, “I wanted to, I just didn’t know how.”

“We don’t have any time for this, they’re on their way,” Wynonna warned with a nod to Nicole, “Get out of here and create as much distance as you can if you’re going to leave.”

“Nicole, I’m sorry and I promise that you and I are going to talk but I need you to leave first,” Waverly reasoned with the redhead. She reached into her pockets, throwing Nicole a set of 2 keys for her to catch, “You can’t go home, they’ll still have eyes there until we get you out of the mess we put you in and you can’t go to school so you need to go to Shorty’s. It’s closed tonight for repairs so leave the lights off but you’ll be safe in there, okay?”

“How can I trust a word you say now?” Nicole knew she could, she knew Waverly was telling her the truth and she knew the brunette cared for her but she wasn’t ready to give up her anger towards the Earp sisters yet, “Why should I believe you?”

“Because I found out over the past few days that you mean more to me than I could have imagined and I’m not going to do anything to screw that up again,” Honesty and sincerity were practically pouring out of Waverly’s body, “You go or you get captured and I would really like the chance to actually explain myself.”

“She saved you once tonight, it’s got to be worth something,” Wynonna offered with a small shrug, looking around at the glass all over the floor, “Go, Haught. They won’t find out you were here from any of us.”

Nicole groaned to herself inwardly, looking down at the keys in her hand before catching Waverly’s intent eyes one more time before rushing towards the door.

She could hear sirens in the distance, wondering whether she had wasted too much time in trying to understand the situation instead of leaving like she was supposed to. She had to trust Waverly; she didn’t have a choice as to whether she would trust her now so she didn’t stop until she got to her car. Her hands fumbled the car keys, dropping them to the floor momentarily before she scooped them up from her feet and started the engine.

Her foot hit the accelerator so quickly that the tires struggled to grip the dirt underneath her car, not daring to look back at the house as she sped up the driveway and into the opposite direction of where she heard the sirens coming from. She couldn’t understand how she could warrant so many people coming after her, she couldn’t understand how she had been placed in that situation in Waverly was powered herself.

It was a revelation that Nicole wasn’t ready for even though things made a lot more sense to her now that she knew what was going on with Waverly Earp. Her hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly that her knuckles were white, her mind racing as fast as she was allowing the car to travel. She was angry, confused, thankful, upset, surprised, relieved, shaken, anxious and vindicated all at once now knowing what she did without being given a real explanation.

Nicole stopped her car against her own better judgement far enough away so that whoever these Black Badge people were to her wouldn’t be able to see them but close enough to know that Waverly had been telling the truth about the situation at least. She watched as 6 police cars created a cloud of dirt along the Earp Homestead driveway, closely followed by 2 black vans; the black vans that Nicole had seen many times all around the country.

In that moment though she had learnt something much like Waverly had learnt that day. As she looked at the chaos unfolding on the Earp Homestead, all she could think about was the youngest Earp sibling and hoping they could somehow move through whatever situation they had found themselves in. Concern shaped her brow as she watched the officers move towards the house with weapons drawn but knowing she needed to leave because going back would do more harm than good.

After a few deep inhales and exhales, Nicole gave one more look towards the house and pushed her foot down onto the accelerator. She would go to the diner, she wasn’t going to let go of anything she was feeling but if Waverly was willing to go through what Nicole just saw for her then she would give her one final chance to explain and if she didn’t get what she wanted from the explanation then she would have to leave Purgatory for good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here come a lot of answers! Thanks for everyone who has reviewed, I can't tell you how much I love hearing from you!

Her mind was racing what felt like a million miles a minute, her head spinning as she tried to comprehend the betrayal, the anger, the relief, the gratitude she felt with feelings she couldn’t even register all wrapped into one. She had contemplated leaving Purgatory then and there, the authorities already knew Nicole was powered; the Earp sisters seemingly made sure of that so she didn’t know what was going to happen if she stayed. She also would never get an explanation from Waverly as to why she did it and why she changed her mind right before the police came to pick Nicole up. She had nothing with her but the clothes on her back and her car but Nicole knew she could survive on less.

Still, she found herself pulling up to the empty diner, parking her car as out of sight as she possibly could before getting out without wasting a moment longer. Her left hand produced a flame as she fished for the diner key inside her back pocket, knowing her last experience in that very car park provided her with enough reason for caution. After she had witnessed the number of police rushing towards the homestead, seeing the amount of trouble Waverly was getting herself into just so that she could escape gave her the grounds to hear the other girl out and if she wasn’t satisfied with what she was hearing; she would leave.

Nicole cautiously approached the door into the diner, the flame never dissipating from her hand knowing that if something or someone was lying in waiting for her that she would cause them some trouble for whatever they were trying to achieve. The diner was completely empty as she unlocked the door, she could hear nothing else but her heart beating loudly in her ears and her footsteps echoing once she had locked up behind herself. The redhead cautiously moved around the diner, making sure she was alone and once she had established she was, she moved towards a corner booth closest to the door so that should someone come that she wasn’t expecting she could try and make a quick escape. She only quelled the flame dancing in her palm once she had established she was alone, not wanting the light she was generating from the fire to attract any unwanted attention.

It was 4 hours until she heard 2 cars pull up into the parking lot; she inhaled sharply upon seeing one vehicle was Waverly’s jeep and the other a car she had never seen before. She swallowed thickly hearing 4 sets of footsteps approaching the door, her first instinct taking over when fire sparked through her hands with one arm out in front of her with the other by her side. The front door opened after the click of a key unlocked it, Waverly stepping in first with glassy eyes and a cautious look on her face. She held her hands up defensively in front of her wordlessly as her chest heaved, the redhead knowing Waverly could probably hurt her if the youngest Earp was as powerful as she seemed but one glance proved that she was only worried about Nicole.

It had been 4 hours, it was obvious that something had happened at the homestead and judging by Waverly’s exhausted demeanor, it was clear they had been through a testing few days on all accounts. Wynonna appeared behind her sister, reaching for her gun until Waverly turned around quickly with a shake of her head. The man she now knew as Doc was next into the diner and a guy she had never seen before rounded out the group when the closed the door behind himself, holding his hands up in the air like Waverly.

“Nicole…” Waverly uttered weakly, her bottom lip quivering.

“Why was I waiting here for 4 hours?” Nicole asked coolly, making sure to keep the intensity in her flames, “And I don’t want a story, I want the truth.”

“We had a lot to deal with, Haught,” Wynonna answered before Waverly could even open her mouth again, “They’re gone for now though but I probably wouldn’t go home tonight if you can help it.”

“I want an explanation like I was promised,” Nicole’s eyes stayed glued to Waverly, her body shaking with nerves whilst trying to hold her focus, “I deserve one.”

“You do, you definitely, definitely do,” Waverly responded with a nod, glancing back to her sister, “Can you guys wait outside, I need to talk to Nicole alone.”

“Are you sure?” Wynonna questioned carefully and quietly.

“She’s not going to hurt me and I need it just to be us,” Waverly reassured her sister before turning to look to the redhead once more, “I trust her.”

“Look, Haught, I’m really sorry,” Wynonna’s voice was as sincere as Nicole had ever heard it, “We didn’t think we had a choice and I’m really sorry but I was just trying to protect my sister.”

Nicole didn’t move to reply, just keeping her gaze on the three as they left the diner without another word. The door closed behind them quietly, Nicole allowing the flames in her palms to slowly disappear until there wasn’t even a spark visible, unable to find the energy to stay focused enough to keep them.

“I promise that I won’t leave here until you ask me to or I answer all of your questions,” Waverly said seriously, moving to sit at a booth and gesturing for Nicole to sit across from her, “Whatever you want to know, I’m an open book.”

“Who was that with your sister and Doc?” Nicole wasted no time, basically cutting off Waverly while she spoke, “And who is Doc?”

“Doc is a friend of ours. He and Wynonna are kind of together though I don’t know if they are right now or not but he’s someone we both trust with our lives and someone who has helped us a lot,” Waverly replied with a shrug, “Dolls is a friend of ours as well but he works within a special division of the government, more specifically in Purgatory called Black Badge. Dolls just started off as an officer who was assigned to us but he’s become a good friend of ours and he’s been our eyes and ears on the inside for a while now.”

“And you just know you can trust him?”

“He’s proven himself a few times and I don’t know if we would have survived this long without him,” Waverly replied with a shrug, watching as Nicole didn’t move an inch closer towards where she was sitting, “We can trust him, he helped us get out of the situation that went down tonight.”

“What kind of a person are you if you’re powered yourself and you turned in someone who is just like you?” Nicole snapped lowly, her teeth gritting as she looked at the other woman. She wanted to hate Waverly Earp, she wanted to walk out of the diner not needing to talk but she couldn’t; she needed to know why the Earp sisters did what they did and she wanted to figure out why she felt so betrayed, “I spent 4 hours sitting here trying to think of what reason you could have for doing something like that and I couldn’t think of anything so I want you to explain to me. I want you to make me see why so I can make sense of what you have put me through tonight.”

“We’re nothing alike, Nicole. I’m not like you, I wish I was but I’m not,” Waverly’s voice faltered, her hand swept her hair out of her face as she exhaled slowly, “I know you wouldn’t do anything like I almost did and I know you would be braver through the situation I’m in right now but I’m just trying to survive and I know it was wrong and I’ll be lucky for you to even look at me again after tonight let alone trust me.”

“So why?”

“This is going to be a long winded story but I’ve been identified as powered to the government for a long time, since I discovered it myself because of how daddy died,” Waverly admitted with a nod, her eyes dropping to her hands on the table, “It wasn’t as bad back then from what I can remember, it certainly wasn’t like it is now. Daddy had abilities; he could make you feel whatever he wanted you to feel so when we lost him, I realized just how much of the world he had been shielding me from for better or for worse. You don’t know this yet because you haven’t seen it but Wynonna is powered too.”

“You’re both powered?” Nicole raised her eyebrows, genuine shock covering her face.

“Wynonna’s abilities aren’t so obvious because from the outside looking in, you wouldn’t be able to tell unless she and peacemaker, the gun she pointed at you, were in trouble,” Waverly spoke carefully, her eyes not daring to leave Nicole’s, “She was given Peacemaker by our grandfather, who was given it by his grandfather, Wyatt Earp.”

“The Wyatt Earp?” Nicole’s eyebrows raised, watching Waverly only nod in response as she continued her sentence.

“Peacemaker isn’t just any kind of gun, it’s one that only Wynonna can use and one she can only use against her enemies; whoever Peacemaker decides they are,” Waverly sighed heavily, her tone indicating burden in her thoughts, “She might have pointed her gun at you but I’m not sure it would have fired because weirdly, the gun is a pretty accurate judge of character. She and that damn gun are linked and whilst it’s protected us a few times, Peacemaker is also what killed our dad.”

“Wait, Wynonna shot your dad?” Nicole’s head was spinning, trying to make sense of Waverly’s story, trying to swallow everything that had already happened that day, “I don’t understand.”

“The night I discovered what I was, Bobo came to the homestead for the first time. I was 6 and he somehow must have known about Wynonna and I so he tried to talk daddy into letting him see us. He just wanted to see if it were true, he wanted to see if the two Earp girls were like him and powered. He already had a bad reputation around town, he used his abilities to get whatever he wanted and no one talked about it because everyone was too afraid,” The brunette’s expression hardened, her hands balling into a fist and her knuckles turning white, “Daddy said no so they got into an argument which eventually came to blows. Wynonna hadn’t really learnt to understand Peacemaker at that point but she tried to use it to defend us and Bobo only manipulated the bullet to go straight through our father in the most horrific way. It happened in the barn, right in front of both of us and as a 6 year old, I cracked. I screamed and broke every single window inside the house, I pushed Bobo out of the barn, through the door with my thoughts so he took off and the police were called.”

“So that’s how you discovered you had abilities?” The pity and empathy in Nicole’s voice evident, “I’m sorry you went through that, no one deserves that.”

“That was just the start because from there, the Government knew were had abilities and they basically owned us; they kind of still do. At least at that time Nedley was still completely in charge so we were considered as safe as we could possibly be but after daddy died, Wynonna left and she didn’t want anything to do with Peacemaker or our family,” The brunette continued, picking at her nails nervously as she completely slipped into her shell, “When she eventually did come back, she brought Doc with her who knows about our abilities and has helped us a lot since he got here. She only came back a few years ago, just in time because that’s when Black Badge arrived here and that’s when they started taking control. Bobo has made this place a living hell for everyone and made the rest of us look bad.”

Nicole didn’t say a word and didn’t move an inch as she watched Waverly very carefully, unsure as to how to take the story she was being told and hoping it was finally the truth.

“Black Badge began rounding up people like us street by street but when they came to the homestead, we thought we were ready. We didn’t want to hurt anyone; we certainly weren’t trying to help Bobo’s cause but we also knew we didn’t deserved to be imprisoned for it but I hadn’t quite harnessed my abilities yet. It’s probably something I’m always going to have to work on and something I let slip sometimes but I was still powerful enough to keep us away from harm until they sent Dolls in to talk to us,” The conversation paused as they heard the echoes of sirens in the distance, Waverly standing in her place as she saw Nicole tense, “They’re not coming here, okay? I promise you that they’re not coming here.”

“You’re going to have to forgive me if I’m a little hesitant on your promises,” Nicole responded quickly, her words coming out of her mouth sharper than intended, “Keep going.”

“Wynonna had seen Dolls before and they realized that we’re more of a help to them out here being a family that’s been in Purgatory for generations so Wynonna cut us a deal to keep us free. It’s not something I’m proud of, it’s not something that I like but it kept us away from being taken away from here so we took the deal. Before I tell you what it is, I need you to know that she did this years ago to protect me and we both hate it; so much so that when I found out you were one of us I couldn’t do it,” The brunette stepped out from the booth, taking hopefully steps to Nicole whose feet stayed glued in her spot, “Our deal was to name any powered individuals that we come in contact with and we get our freedom in return. We report them, they get taken away and we get to live.”

“So you betray people just like you to save yourself?” Nicole’s blood instantly boiled. She could see the shame, she could see the guilt on Waverly’s face but her anger was greater than any other emotion she was feeling, “How many people before me?”

“Just 2, Beth and Mercedes Gardner and I tried to warn them but they didn’t listen to me,” Waverly tried to explain quickly, her hands up defensively, “If I could lie all the time and say I didn’t know anyone who was powered then I would but they have someone who works for them, he can break into your mind in the most painful way. I’ve learnt ways to get around him but I couldn’t with them.”

“Did you get around him with me?”

“I didn’t give myself any other choice, I wasn’t going to let them know about you and if they already did; I wasn’t going to give them any evidence,” The brunette’s voice growing strong as she spoke of the woman in front of her, “I had no idea you had abilities and if I had of known, as much as I would have hated it, I would have stayed as far away from you as I possibly could because the less I know the safer you were. That’s why I was so apprehensive when you started telling me about your abilities, it wasn’t because I was scared; it was because all I could think of was the dread running through my body. I knew I was going to have to tell them I had a suspicion, which is all they need now or they were going to pull it from my mind and take us away anyway.”

“When did you tell them about me?” Nicole questioned with a shake of her head, “When did you change your mind?”

“Wynonna told them that you might have been powered and they were going to come and get you tonight. We had a big argument, that caused the broken window in my room that you saw earlier and I was supposed to stay home until tomorrow when you’d be gone but I never changed my mind, I was never going to let this happen to you,” Waverly took two steps forwards to Nicole, the redhead watching her curiously with a defeated but still angered expression, “I couldn’t stay home and let this happen to you because I really care about you, Nicole. I know it might not sound like it but it took me all day to work up the courage to talk to you and I knew I couldn’t let you say no to coming over even if I had to drag you to the homestead myself. I couldn’t live with myself if I let that happen and if I have to live with you hating me then so be it but at least you’re not captured because of me. I’ll do whatever I have to so I can gain your forgiveness but if I can’t then I have to be at peace with that.”

“Why was I different?” Nicole’s hard exterior faltered as every range of emotion she had ever felt flickered through her body, “Why not just let it happen to me and you stay out of trouble?”

“I have feelings for you, Nicole. They’re strong ones too, the kind that don’t let you think about much else when you’re around,” Waverly said with a simple shrug, her hand coming up to her eyes to rub them roughly, “And I sound like an idiot because we haven't known each other for that long but I think you feel something too. Somehow, you make me forget about everything that’s going on around me, you keep me calm and you make me feel safe. I didn’t mean to say it aloud when I did but what I said about meeting someone for the first time and knowing they were going to change your life was real. You're special and I want to find out why you have captured my attention so much.”

“If that’s true, now what?” Nicole asked quietly, silence weighing heavy between the two, still collecting the pieces of her heart that she was slowly gathering up from the floor, “What do I do now that Black Badge think I’m powered?”

“You’ve got to lay low but for now, I think we convinced them I was wrong. It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t overly pleasant but Dolls is going to take care of it,” Waverly said tiredly with a no further explanation, “I know this is a lot and I can’t even begin to tell you how sorry I am to get you involved. I’m sorry I wasn’t honest with you when you were only trying to protect me from Bobo and I understand if you can’t forgive me; I’m not totally sure I deserve it.”

“So obviously Wynonna has never made those so called bad choices with him then?”

“No but I didn’t know how else to explain it. You’ve got to understand that I didn’t know you were powered and I wasn’t going to tell you I was because you know how much danger people can be in just by aiding powered individuals so I had to explain it some other way,” Nicole felt her anger slowly starting to melt away, being replaced by hurt and sadness as she watched the other girl in front of her, “We’re isolated and we don’t know who to trust because we Bobo is clearly insane and stands for something we never would but Black Badge are just as bad if not worse so for now, we’re stuck. Which is why it took me by surprise when I was able to trust you as much as I do.”

“Just so I know what is going on, Bobo wants you to join his group but Black Badge know about him and they haven’t gone after him yet?” Nicole responded with furrowed brows, “I don’t understand why they don’t just capture him and end whatever he is trying to do?”

“Because he’s really powerful and they’ve tried but he can manipulate weapons, metal, whatever he wants them to do. The only thing he can’t seem to control now that Wynonna is back is Peacemaker so he wants us with him because we’re the only people he considers a threat and I think Black Badge secretly know we’re the only people who have a chance at stopping him,” Waverly answered without hesitation, “He’s the reason why the Homestead is targeted all the time, he’s the reason why the Earp curse even started because everything bad that happens on our property is because he isn’t getting what he wants. It’s only a matter of time before he really starts coming after us but he’s got something planned, he’s going to do something that’s going to make everything worse for people like us but we just don’t know what it is yet”

Nicole didn’t say anything once Waverly had stopped speaking, she had a lot to think about and there was a lot of processing happening inside of her mind. The fact that Waverly had betrayed her but then she risked her life just to correct what she saw as a mistake was conflicting enough for anyone before the fact that the brunette just admitted to having strong feelings for her.

All she could do was stand there, completely still with her eyes locked on the brunette. She wanted to forgive Waverly, she wanted to wrap her in her arms and tell her that everything was okay and that she’d do whatever she could to help her with Bobo but she couldn’t and she wasn’t going to. Waverly didn’t need Nicole’s help, the redhead saw the younger girl as far more powerful than her and she was the one who was in the most danger.

“Please say something,” Nicole’s thoughts were interrupted by Waverly’s pleading words.

“You could have told me all of this, I would have listened. It wouldn’t have taken you turning me in for me to listen because I would have,” Nicole uttered with a shake of her head, feeling her emotions start to swell with her vision blurring slightly, “I want to trust you, I want to tell you that everything is okay and that I’m fine but I can’t and it’s not.”

“I know, I don’t expect it to be right now but I can’t deal with you hating me, Nicole,” Waverly responded with a shake of her head, “You’re the first person who has seen the real me and you’re the first person who I even wanted to see it. I know I made a mistake and I will spend every day for as long as I need to so I make it up to you but I just can’t deal with you hating me.”

“I don’t hate you, Waverly. You saved me tonight and I’m not going to forget that,” Nicole exhaled deeply, for once speaking the words as the flowed from her brain, “And I’m sorry about your dad, about what Black Badge have over you and about Bobo but I just need to be away from all of you for right now so I can try to work out if it’s safe for me to stay here or not.”

“You’re safer staying here than running,” Waverly shook her head, her brows furrowing, “You can’t leave now or they’ll know I was lying and we’re all dead.”

“So you’re saying I’m stuck here, just like you?”

“No, you’re not but I’m telling you the truth. There’s nothing keeping you here but a lot is going to happen to the both of us if you do just up and leave,” Waverly bravely closed the gap between the two, reaching out to take Nicole’s hand gently; the redhead feeling the other woman’s body shaking like a leaf, “But I guess that leads to the question of what you want.”

“For right now, I need space,” Nicole shook her head but making sure to give Waverly’s hand a small squeeze before letting go. She was heartbroken and she was angry but she still cared for the other girl and could appreciate how much Waverly had been through that day just so she could be free, “Thank you for what you did for me tonight, thank you for making me go to your house but I think I just need some space to think and process.”

“Okay,” Waverly’s lip quivered, her eyes trying to blink away the tears that were forming, “Just lay low for the next few days, okay? Lay low and you’ll be fine.”

“Thanks.” Was all Nicole could offer before she knew she needed to leave or she was going to lose her cool for more reasons than one.

She held Waverly’s gaze for a moment longer before turning on her heel and beginning the walk to the front entry diner. She paused with her hand on the door, her flat palm pressing gently into the cool steel; wanting to turn around to Waverly to see the other girl one more time before she walked out but she knew she couldn’t. She knew she couldn’t because she would walk straight back to her and more than likely pull her into a tight hug just so their bodies were close.

Nicole swallowed thickly, feeling a lump rise in her throat as she shook the thought from her head. She couldn’t and she wouldn’t because her caution is what had kept her alive and free for so long and Waverly had almost cost her all of that. The brunette did seek redemption and she did dig Nicole out of the mess she created but it wasn’t something that Nicole was going to forget any time soon.

With that thought, she pushed through the door and out of the diner but not before hearing the quietest of whimpers behind her; knowing that Waverly was breaking down and it only tore her to pieces further. She rubbed her eyes roughly, watching as Wynonna, Doc and Dolls pushed off the jeep with confusion and concern on their faces when Nicole rushed to her car.

“Nicole, all of this was my fault, okay?” Wynonna said seriously, following the younger girl towards her car, “Waverly wanted to protect you the whole time and she didn’t want to turn you in but I made her and I made her stay home.”

“Why?” Nicole turned her head quickly, her eyebrows furrowed as she felt the weight of the situation fall onto her shoulders, “I’ve spoken to you once. All I try and do is survive, I have never hurt anyone that wasn’t coming after me so what did I do to you to deserve you turning me in?”

“You didn’t do anything, not one thing,” Wynonna’s voice was raw and true, “But I had to choose between you and my sister so I chose Waverly thinking that I only had the 2 choices. Turns out my sister is even more resourceful than I thought and it turns out she cares about you way more than I expected. I’m sorry and I will be apologizing to you until you either forgive me or you tell me to stop and that’s pretty big coming from me.”

“It’s true.” Doc chimed in with a nod.

“We’re stuck between Bobo and Black Badge so our options aren’t endless but I am sorry you got caught up in this all because you were trying to defend Waves from Bobo,” Wynonna continued with a shake of her head, “I just need you to know though that Waverly did everything she could to protect you. She tried to hide what happened with Bobo, she broke windows in the house when I confronted her about you; she brought you to the Homestead to keep you away from your house and she took herself to the point of exhaustion just trying to make Black Badge see what they wanted her to see and risked her life just to keep you out of what we dragged you into so that has to be worth something.”

“Thank you.” Nicole muttered almost silently, feeling her resolve break again when her eyes drifted to the diner and she spotted Waverly watching closely with heavy concern on her face.

Nicole took one last look at Waverly, sighing heavily but still moving to her car feeling like she was unable to get out of there soon enough. A storm was brewing internally; she was fighting to control the urge to scream, to curse and burn everything in her path because she was angry.

She was angry that Waverly had betrayed her, she was angry that she let herself trust someone else, she was angry that the Earp sisters lied to her but most of all, she was angry that she found understanding in the situation. Deep down, she knew she wasn’t angry at Waverly at all and whilst she didn’t completely comprehend everything that the brunette had gone through; she understood that risks had been taken by the whole group just to keep Nicole safe. There was so much happening inside her mind that she couldn’t contain and she couldn’t make sense of. The noise her mind was generating was almost too much for her to handle when she was trying to concentrate on getting home safely but she didn’t know how safe she would actually be once she reached her destination.

Her hands were growing warmer by the second, her knuckles white with the pressure she was using to grip the steering wheel. Her mind continued to circle back to Waverly’s words, her admission of feelings circling around the redhead’s brain causing even more confusion for the powered individual.

Things were only made worse when she made her regular turn towards her well hidden street, seeing an unmarked black car sitting down the end of the road with its lights off and the engine off. She had seen those cars before, she had seen them since the beginning and she knew that they were positioned to watch her so she knew despite Waverly’s efforts, she was not safe. She may not have been on the currently hunted list but she certainly wasn’t being left alone so as soon as she saw the car and knew she was far enough away for them not to see her; she turned her car around as quickly as she could manage without attracting any attention.

She didn’t know where she was going to go, her heart not needing another excuse to beat out of her chest but she gained one as she anxiously looked behind her to see the car was unmoving. Nicole drove around Purgatory that night until she could hardly keep her eyes open, pulling up on the side of the road on the edge of town hoping that it was far enough away for her to be left alone. When she placed the car in park she felt her frustrations peak, hitting the steering wheel angrily as her hand lit up only for her to shake away any trace of her ability. For the first time, she just wanted it to stop, she wanted to be normal and she didn’t want to be powered because all it brought to her was pain. For the first time in her life, after being struck down so many times because of how she was born; she just wanted to be simply human. She was at risk if she stayed, the government being as close to Nicole as they had ever been but she knew she could have been in even more trouble if she left.

The nagging voice in her head continued to remind her of the real reason why she knew she couldn’t leave. Her name floated through the redhead’s mind like it had done constantly since she met her; flooding her thoughts for better or for worse. Nicole wasn’t sure what was going to happen between them after everything that had just gone down but it quickly came apparent to the redhead that Waverly was far more important to her life than she had even realized yet. It was confusing, it was infuriating, it was empowering, it was obvious that Nicole was now tied to the youngest Earp and in her heart of hearts, she was very okay with that fact.

Her eyes grew heavy as she turned the key and removed it from the ignition, her head leaning back on the headrest of her car as sleep began to take over her body; the much needed rest sweeping over her in entirety. She could only hope that she could find peace in her sleep that she knew would be missing and had been missing for quite some time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll see some Bobo next chapter and things are going to get a little hectic with a major confrontation that's just the beginning.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi All,   
> Hope everyone is having a happy holidays! Sorry this was a bit delayed, it's been a bit of a busy time at work. I'll update soon :)

 It wasn’t the faint echo of an explosion that woke Nicole up from her sleep; it was the overwhelming feeling that something bad was happening that she needed to be aware of. Her blurry eyes quickly honed in on the clock by her steering wheel, she had been asleep in her car for 5 hours and the day had reached the early hours of the morning before she was awoken. Her confusion set in quickly as to why she was asleep in her car until the memories of the previous day flooded her brain and the same, spinning thoughts began to roll around her head once more.

The sun was on the verge of rising but the darkness was still holding power over Purgatory with a faint, unusual glow was burning through the blackness. Her eyes adjusted before hearing the same distant echo that lead to her being shaken from her sleep, turning her car on quietly as she felt a tightness grip her chest tightly like a vice. Once she gathered her bearings a few minutes after coming back from the outer limits of Purgatory she had a very sudden realization that the explosions and glow were coming from the Earp homestead.

There was no hesitation from the redhead like she thought there may have been, surprising herself as she drove as quickly as her car would take her in the direction of whatever was happening. The one thought in her mind was Waverly and not knowing whether the trouble that was brewing was self inflicted or it came from someone like Bobo. She found herself coming to the realization that it didn’t matter because either way the youngest Earp wasn’t safe and that bothered Nicole more than she could explain.

As she pulled up well outside of the homestead, it became very clear that nothing that was happening was self-inflicted upon seeing what looked like Bobo and a number of powered individuals surrounding the house with one car already set alight at the front of the house. It was clear that Waverly, Wynonna and Doc were defending themselves inside the house, a few crumpled bodies laying on the outside next to those who were still standing and trying to cause as much havoc as possible.

“I don’t want to come in there but I will if I need to,” Bobo called loudly, laughter following his words, “I mean, if you want this to continue then that’s fine but I know you’re all exhausted and there’s no way you’re going to outlast us so you might as well join the winning team. That’s all we want, we just want to show you that we know how to get you out of your current predicament.”

“Kiss my ass, Bobo,” Wynonna yelled from the window, Nicole spotting the older woman near the kitchen, “Leave now or we’re going to come out there and send you back to the hellhole you came from.”

“I don’t know why you continue to protect those people out there when all they have ever done is reject you,” Bobo yelled loudly, turning to one of the powered individuals to his left and giving them a nod, “All we want to do is empower you but I will turn this house inside out and I will kill you and Mr. Holiday of you if I have to. I need to talk to Waverly, we both know she is the key to all of this so I need an audience with her.”

Nicole noticed movement coming from the back of the house towards the barn, the person that Bobo had gestured to was moving around the other side of the homestead, towards Waverly’s window. She cursed internally before moving as quickly as she could with little sound, making sure to stay low until she reached the side of the barn. She kept her back flat against the wooden structure, peaking around the corner to see the powered individual slowly transforming his arms into long, sharp, sword like limbs and that was enough for Nicole to know that they were going to try and charge the house.

Before anything else could happen, she lifted her hands up to her sides; feeling the warmth spread through her body as flames instantly burnt over her palms. She swallowed thickly, knowing what this would start but not knowing any other way to protect the Earp Homestead than to attack before Bobo and his group could again. Without another thought or hesitation, she pushed a powerful ball of flames towards the man standing by the side of the house, launching him across the ground with force. He screamed as fire caught onto his clothes, watching him squirm and call for help as the flames roared over him. She watched him momentarily, her eyes getting caught up in the glow of the fire before shifting her hand back towards her, seeing the flames suffocating under her abilities. His clothes smoldered and he was unmoving, Nicole wondering for a moment how much damage she caused until was distracted by a tap on her shoulder; turning around to see herself surrounded by what looked to be multiple copies of one woman, her hands on her hips and a smirk on her face.

“You’ve got a 1 in 6 chance of getting this right,” She said with an amused tone, “You better pray you do.”

“I’m not trying to fight you, I just want you to leave.”

“Sometimes you have to fight for what you want,” She countered quickly, “Do you want us to leave enough that you’ll fight me?”

Nicole didn’t answer, the flame in her hands rising once more as she prepared to launch as much power surrounding her body as she could until suddenly the multiple women morphed back into the one and she was thrown into the side of the barn with force. The redhead looked over to the side of the homestead as her name was called, looking over to see Waverly gesturing for her to move towards her.

Nicole took a quick look around before rushing towards the door Waverly had open for her, breathing a sigh of relief as soon as she heard the door locking behind them even though she knew she was just as vulnerable inside as she was outside. She turned to Waverly who had a shocked expression with a hint of a smirk on her face, her eyes drifted into the front of the homestead where she could see Wynonna and Doc huddled together by the window.

“What are you doing here?” Waverly hissed as she pulled Nicole towards Doc and Wynonna, “How did you get around the back?”

“I just set a guy on fire because he was like a pair of giant scissors and he was coming towards the door,” Nicole responded quietly, giving a brief nod to Doc who did the same, “I heard an explosion while I was out and knew it came from around here.”

“Those crazy bastards blew up my car,” Doc grumbled angrily, “If only Wynonna would allow me, I could walk out there and shoot them all before they knew what was happening.”

“All we have are metal bullets besides peacemaker and you know that if you step foot out there Bobo will just turn every bullet right back towards you,” Wynonna responded with a shake of her head, “I thought they’d leave but Bobo is really worked up about something and I’d go out there with peacemaker but I’m outnumbered.”

“Wynonna, let me go out there,” Waverly suggested as she stepped towards her sister, “You know I can make them all leave.”

“At what cost, Waves?” Wynonna shook her head once more, “No, you’ve been exhausted enough. I want to get you out of here but the Jeep is out there and Doc’s car is on fire.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Nicole moved her hand back towards her, peaking out of the window to see the fire burning inside the car disappear instantly, “Now your car _was_ on fire.”

“I didn’t know you could do that,” Waverly’s tone hinting at the surprise she was trying to suppress, “I guess I don’t know everything you can do.”

“We have no idea what she can do by what we’ve seen but we don’t have time to find out right now,” Wynonna grumbled as she heard Bobo’s voice call out to them again, groaning in frustration, “I’m going to go out and talk to him, it’s the only way to get him to leave.”

“What are you going to say to him?” Waverly questioned angrily, “Hi Bobo, we’re actually not interested in murdering a gym full of students at the pep rally.”

“What?!” Nicole stood quickly only to have her arm yanked on by Waverly to huddle back next to the other girl, “What are you talking about?”

“We don’t have time to go over this, I need to get Waverly out of here,” Wynonna waved Nicole’s concerns off abruptly, “I can update you if you want me to or I can leave you out of it but I need to get my sister out of here before Bobo puts his stupid metallic hands on her.”

“So he’s here for Waverly?” The redhead’s voice firming as the idea of what Wynonna had said made her angrier than she wanted to admit.

“He’s always wanted Waverly on his side because she’s the most powerful person he’s ever come across.”

“Well if she’s so powerful, why not let her have at it?” Nicole glanced to the brunette who still had her hand on her forearm.

“Because she gets too exhausted when she outputs so much and she doesn’t know how to control her abilities yet.”

“You can just say that you’re worried I’m going to kill us all.” Waverly sighed with a shake of her head, her thumb stroking gently against Nicole’s skin before letting her arm go.

“I’m worried you’re going to kill us all,” Wynonna replied quickly with a nod, “Now, she can break more than a window or two and take out a few other powered but I’m not letting her go out there against someone like Bobo and everyone he has.”

“So the plan is then what?” Nicole wondered aloud, looking at Doc who gave a small but helpless shrug.

“The plan is get Waverly the hell out of here, somewhere safe where he doesn’t know how to find her and then to work out how we’re going to stop this Bobo problem from getting out of control.” Wynonna spoke quickly, rolling her eyes hearing him call to them with impatience.

“I can get her out.” Nicole’s words left her mouth before she even knew she was going to speak.

She was still mad; she was still more than upset but she found herself wanting Waverly’s safety more than any other feeling running through her mind.

“Is one of your abilities turning invisible because if it’s not, I don’t know how you’re planning on getting out of here,” Wynonna said flatly, “I have to go out there.”

“You don’t know what he’s going to do if you go out there, you know what he is capable of,” Waverly warned, her eyes landing on Nicole’s who was watching her intently, “If Nicole thinks she can get me out of here then I think we should try. She got in here after all.”

“You really think you can get her out of here?” Wynonna sighed loudly, resigning to the fact that she didn’t have much of a choice.

“I need a distraction but yeah, I can get her out of here.”

“And where are we going to meet you?” Doc asked, peering through the window to silently count the number of people left standing outside.

“My cabin, there’s no way Bobo knows where that is,” Nicole responded quickly, feeling Waverly’s hand slide into her own and squeezing it gently, “I know it’s risky with Black Badge but it’s the only place I can think that is out of the way. Have Waves send you a message with the address and meet us there when you’re clear.”

“Okay but if you get spotted, come back in here and we’ll figure something out,” The look of concern covered Wynonna’s face as she reached over to cup Waverly’s face gently and give her the smallest of smiles, “Don’t do anything you don’t need to. You’ve already done enough.”

“We’re going to go the same way I came in, I parked far enough away for my car not to bring any attention to us,” Nicole spoke quietly, feeling a strange sense of loss as Waverly’s hand left hers as they prepared for their impending exit, “We just have to stay close together and I’ll need you to follow me as quickly as you can.”

“Haught, you better be up to this.” Wynonna warned with very little strength, understanding what a difficult position the redhead was now in.

“Believe me, I’ve evaded people a lot smarter than Bobo,” Nicole responded as reassuringly as she could before she shifted her attention back to Waverly, “Ready?”

Waverly didn’t say a word, only nodding as she watched Wynonna stand in her place slowly; pulling peacemaker up from the floor with her and sending a wink her sisters way. Nicole tugged on Waverly’s hand gently, gaining back her attention and moving towards the back door that the brunette had pulled her through only a short time ago.

The redhead cracked the door open, peeking out through the small gap to see the man she had thrown a fireball at still unmoving on the floor and damage to the barn where she had pushed the other woman. Steeling herself, her hand warmed and tingled until a burning flame rose from her palm and obediently danced over her skin. The sun had risen by that point so the glow of the fire was nothing that would draw attention to themselves as they tried to make a sleek exit from the homestead.

She pushed through the door with haste, looking back quickly to see Waverly closely behind her as her heart beat rose, adrenaline coursing through her veins suddenly. Her protectiveness for the girl behind her, the same one who had sent her mind spinning with the news of her would be betrayal, only grew by the second when they made it to the barn.

They tucked themselves tightly against it, Nicole groaning quietly when she tripped over her own feet as she considered what their next move would be if Wynonna didn’t create a distraction soon.

As if on cue, she heard Wynonna’s voice antagonizing Bobo along with the front door being kicked out dramatically. She saw her window of opportunity, reaching back to take Waverly’s hand in her own; unable to just ignore the feeling of electricity surge up her arm as she felt their fingers intertwining quickly. They pushed from the barn, taking quiet but steady steps towards the edge of the property and to the safety of Nicole’s car. She caught herself glancing back at the situation behind her, Wynonna spouting whatever came to her mind as she aimed peacemaker in the direction of Bobo. Nicole then caught the glance of one of the powered individual’s in Bobo’s group and knew all hell was about to break loose because that was when she heard the first shot from peacemaker fire.

Wynonna was being overwhelmed and quickly, the distraction was just her shooting peacemaker at the group and whilst it was a distraction; it wasn’t a sustainable one. They moved quickly, Bobo’s attention still on Wynonna for that moment but seeing the realisation on their faces of what was happening became enough for Nicole as her dropped Waverly’s hand, pausing where she stood.

“Go to the car, don’t stop for anything and I’ll be right there,” Nicole’s eyes locked on Bobo who had jumped down from the trunk of the jeep, “I think your sister is going to need some help.”

“So I’ll help then.” Waverly added quickly only to see Nicole shake her head, taking a few steps towards the house.

“No, Wynonna will kill me and I know how to control my abilities,” Nicole responded, unsure of whether what just came out of her mouth was a spiteful shot at the other girl or whether it was mostly out of genuine concern, “I know what that’s like and I don’t want anything to happen that you might regret so go.”

“Fine, okay,” Waverly muttered as she backed up slightly, “Be careful though. Bobo is crazy but he’s also really powerful.”

Nicole’s now free hand lit up fiercely as Wynonna took cover from the onslaught that was coming towards her. She wasn’t trying to hurt anyone and she knew what the agreement was with Wynonna but the elder Earp sister desperately needed her help whether she could admit it or not. Nicole put her hands together, feeling the burn of the heat against her own skin before pushing it away from her body towards Bobo and his group. A wall of fire moved towards them, the heat alone gaining their attention enough for Wynonna to recover her position and take a much-needed pause.

“I knew you would show up at some stage, fire girl,” Bobo said with a grin, his fingers toying with his beard, “I would strongly recommend you reconsider your standings here before you do something you regret.”

“I can promise you I’m not going to regret whatever I do,” Nicole’s voice gave away her anxiousness as she looked around the group who had all turned their attention towards her. She glanced towards Wynonna who was peering out from cover, Doc emerging from the house in the moment of distraction, “Whatever you’re planning…you’re only making things worse for us.”

“You should know better.” Bobo spat bitterly, gesturing towards one of the other members of his group; a middle-aged man who grinned wildly as he brought his fist down to the ground; causing the earth to shake under Nicole’s feet.

Wynonna and Doc fired their weapons in the moment, Bobo moving away from the fire of peacemaker and directing Doc’s bullets towards Nicole. She raised her hand, watching the bullets as if they were in slow motion as they incinerated before her very eyes. She shifted the flames towards the group hurriedly, knowing it would only be moments before the numbers game caught up with them when she saw Bobo rise from the ground only to be slammed down against the solid dead grass beneath him.

She turned her head back to see an angry looking Waverly with her shaking hand reaching out to Bobo. Nicole groaned, throwing a quick but heavy fireball towards Doc’s car; sending a silent apology his way as the car exploded into flames; rocking the ground beneath them once more. The heat of the flames shot out at her immediately but she felt nothing but the warmth against her skin; knowing she needed to use the distraction if she could. Turning on her heel, the ran towards Waverly; grabbing her forearm tightly and pulled the other woman behind her hurriedly so they could make it to the car whilst the smoke bellowed into the sky.

Nicole gave the homestead once last glance as they reached her car, hearing Wynonna yelling at Doc to get inside reassured her that her heat of the moment decision hadn’t harmed anyone she had intended to protect. Waverly got into the car with her head in her hands, holding it painfully as an overwhelming feeling of concern washed over Nicole’s body.

She couldn’t waste any further time though, putting her foot down and taking off as quickly as she could to place as much distance between themselves and Bobo. She calmed slightly once they got to her cabin, ushering Waverly inside carefully and locking the door behind them; rushing to shut the blinds even tighter than they already were.

The small brunette slowly sunk into Nicole’s couch, her breathing heavy and the circles under her eyes dark but she was safe. Nicole paced in front of the other girl, too many feelings and thoughts swirling through her head to make sense of. She was mad, she still felt betrayed and she was bitter but all of that fell away momentarily when she locked eyes with Waverly as they both lingered in an awkward silence.

Neither of them knew what to say, both wanting to speak but being unable to bring themselves to speak for what they knew were very different reasons.

“Thank you,” Waverly rasped almost silently, Nicole having to strain to ensure she was correct in thinking she had spoken, “For back there.”

“Well, I’m guessing Doc is going to be pissed but I had to get us out of there without you doing anything else,” Nicole mumbled, pausing in her tracks, “You never mentioned anything about your abilities hurting you.”

“It’s only because I haven’t harnessed them completely yet,” Waverly said defensively, watching Nicole huff in frustration, “And because I didn’t get the chance to.”

“Well I’d hate to see what you can do when you learn how to use them,” Nicole responded quietly, folding her arms over her chest, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, thanks to you,” Waverly said with a sigh, “To be honest, I was surprised as hell to see you there.”

“I know.” Was all Nicole could pull from inside herself, feeling completely torn and confused.

“I just didn’t think I would see you again and you wouldn’t even get to know how sorry I am,” Waverly’s lips curled into the smallest of smiles, running a hand through her long hair quickly; Nicole cursing herself for the tightness in her chest one movement from the other girl could cause, “Because just in case you wanted to know, I’m really sorry and I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness but I don’t want to lose you.”

“You don’t get a say in that,” The redhead responded coolly as the situation suddenly hit her like a ton of bricks “I’m not ready to talk about this right now. I set someone on fire, I threw someone into your barn and I blew up Doc’s car. You said I would be safe if I laid low and I certainly didn’t just do that so there’s a lot I need to consider before even trying to comprehend everything else.”

“Don’t worry about black badge, they’ll get nothing from any of us about you,” Waverly motioned to stand from the couch, rubbing her forehead roughly, “They’re not going to come near you again if I can help it.”

“You’re going to have to forgive me if I don’t take too much comfort in that,” Nicole snapped quietly, exhaling deeply as she saw the venom in her tone sting Waverly, “I’m sorry.”

“No, that was totally deserved,” She nodded slowly, bringing her hands down to her lap awkwardly, “I didn’t know you could extinguish fire, I didn’t know you could just project a huge line of fire either. That was pretty amazing.”

“I’ve got the ability to control fire, whether that be to start it or extinguish it,” Nicole explained slowly, “I can’t be burnt either, I just feel the heat but that’s about it.”

“Honestly, that’s incredible,” Waverly’s voice dripping with sincerity and insecurity all at once, “It’s even more incredible that you’ve figured out how to control it.”

“After a long time of not being able to,” Nicole’s shoulders slumped, she wanted to be mad at Waverly but she found it extremely difficult when the other woman was in her cabin. She betrayed Nicole but in the same breath she saved her, “You’ll figure it out. By the looks of it, you’re the most powerful person I’ve ever come across so it will probably take you longer than everyone else but once it does; I wouldn’t want to be standing on the other side.”

“Well you’re never going to be, so you don’t have to worry about that,” Waverly’s voice was worn, the younger girl was passed exhaustion, “I know you probably don’t want to hear about this right now but I meant what I said; I really care about you Nicole. This whole thing is a mess and I know I made it but I’ll do whatever I can to make it up to you because you’re too important to me just to give up.”

“I’m going to need more time than a few hours after I fell asleep in my car because I couldn’t come back here, to even get my head around what I’m feeling right now,” Nicole said as gently as she could manage, “What happened with Bobo?”

“He just showed up at the homestead with all of those people he’s gathered and he told us about his plan to trap people in the gym during the pep rally because he wanted non powered humans to realize just who was in charge,” The brunette’s tone flattening immediately, “He wanted to talk to me, he always wants to talk to me like he just forgot he was the one who was responsible for my father dying. He was yelling that he could show me how to use my abilities and that I shouldn’t hide behind anything I am and that he needed Wynonna and I to carry out his plan so they could stop people like us being taken away.”

“So he thinks murdering a gym full of innocent people is going to help his cause?” Nicole’s eyes went wide, feeling her blood run cold as she saw the seriousness in Waverly’s expression, “He is delirious.”

“We know that,” The brunette nodded, “But he is serious and he’s convinced all of those people like us to follow him, which is the scary thing and we don’t know how to stop him yet.”

“Right, well good luck with that.” Nicole shook her head, feeling the overwhelming need to help but not wanting to get any further involved in the situation if she could help it.

“Nicole…”

As Waverly spoke they heard the familiar sound of the Jeep driving towards them. The two girls rushed to the window, pushing the blinds down to see Wynonna, Dolls and Doc moving quickly towards the cabin; doors being slammed closed before a rushed knock filled the relative silence. Nicole opened the door, letting them inside and surveying her surroundings momentarily before closing it behind her and turning to look at the group.

“Dolls showed up just in time to scare Bobo off but you did a pretty good job of that yourself,” Wynonna glanced to the redhead as she embraced her sister tightly, “But I told you to get her out of there and she used her abilities.”

“That was my fault and my choice,” Waverly defended Nicole delicately, “She told me not to.”

“I’m sorry about your car, Doc,” She said awkwardly as the man removed his hat to hold it against his chest with a loud sigh, “It was already charred to be fair but it was the only thing I could think of to keep both Earps safe after Wynonna just decided to go gun slinging.”

“That’s what Peacemaker and I do best,” Wynonna interrupted quickly, “But that was pretty kick ass. What was more kick ass was when you incinerated those bullets in your hand.”

“Well I wasn’t even sure that was going to work but I had to try something,” The redhead glanced back to Waverly, her stomach dropping at how small and hollow the other woman suddenly looked, “You weren’t followed were you?”

“No, we kept them away enough for us to get out of the homestead,” Dolls explained with a nod, “We made sure to lose the rest of black badge too so they didn’t know where we were going even though they now know where you live.”

“About that,” Nicole’s defenses suddenly rose instantly whist her eyes looked around the group, “Just how in the clear am I because I got pretty involved back there.”

“You’re fine,” Wynonna responded quickly and reassuringly, “No one knows we are here.”

“What did you tell them?” Waverly quizzed curiously, her voice still weak and shaky.

Nicole moved to push the blinds aside subtly, her heartbeat slowing gradually as the moments passed, hearing Wynonna speak in the background, “We told them we had a run in with Bobo and that was all the detail we gave them.”

“So you didn’t tell him that he came to you, detailing his plan of how he is going to kill a gym full of innocent people?” The redhead raised her eyebrows, her attention pulled completely back towards the Earp sisters, “Wouldn’t that be the best thing for you to do?”

“You would think so but that’ll just bring on a knee jerk reaction which won’t be good for anyone.” Wynonna gestured to Dolls who nodded, a conflicted expression on his face.

“Sadly, she’s right,” Dolls muttered, “The people working at Black Badge right now aren’t all as understanding so they’re not going to separate Bobo and whoever is with him from any other powered individuals, they’ll just look to eliminate all of you.”

“Which brings us to the point of what are we all going to do about our Bobo problem.” Wynonna sat down on Nicole’s couch, placing peacemaker on the floor in front of her, “Before his plan gets everyone killed.”

“This isn’t _our_ Bobo problem.” Nicole huffed weakly, looking at Waverly and feeling her resolve crumble by the second.

“Well now that you just threw a wall of fire towards him, I’d say that he is your problem now too,” Wynonna countered quickly, rubbing her eyes roughly, “Which was awesome and I appreciate it but you’re thicker than I thought if you think you’re not on either his wish list or his hit list by now.”

“I only came because Waverly was in trouble.”

“And Waverly is still in trouble, Haught,” She looked around the group, her face covered in frustration, “You know, I think the basis of what Bobo is talking about isn’t so crazy. We don’t deserve to be treated like we are and we definitely don’t deserve to be hunted or trapped with our backs against the wall but he just makes things so much worse. If he was gone, I don’t think Black Badge would even care about Purgatory.”

“Now we don’t know if that’s true,” Doc spoke quickly, taking a step towards Wynonna, “We don’t know what Black Badge would do because they’ve been so distracted with Bobo to bother with you or Waverly lately. If he’s gone, maybe it makes things worse for you both.”

“But we can’t let him do what he keeps doing and we sure as hell can’t let him carry out his plan at the pep rally,” Waverly protested with some venom, “If it makes things worse for me then so be it but we can’t let Bobo just walk around hurting people anymore. It makes every single one of us look as bad as him and how are we supposed to find peace within ourselves with that hanging over our heads?”

“Baby girl, I don’t think Doc is talking about just letting him get away with it but he could be right,” Wynonna resigned with a heavy sigh, “We’re not Black Badge’s focus because Bobo is but what happens if he isn’t around anymore?”

“Surely, if we help take him down Black Badge has to admit that they’re wrong about us.” Nicole swallowed thickly at the passion and conviction in Waverly’s voice as the small brunette turned to Dolls, “Right? They’d have to consider that we’re different.”

“They’d still consider you were dangerous because that’s just them but there are some arguments going on within the department at the moment, which I probably shouldn’t be talking about here.” Dolls glanced towards Nicole, obviously uncomfortable with the other girls presence.

“We’re in her house, Dolls,” Waverly snapped heatedly, “And she just came and saved our asses, we can trust Nicole.”

“A guy I went to the academy with, Perry, has been reaching for a high ranking job for a while now and he’s not far off it,” Dolls eyed the group cautiously after a momentary pause, “If he got the job, they might be willing to work with us if we can prove that we’re willing to protect Purgatory.”

“What, so we’d be like some screwed up version of the Avengers?” Wynonna gawked with a roll of her eyes, “Perry or not, Black Badge is never going to change.”

“Maybe not but you have a better shot at your freedom if you prove yourselves to them,” Dolls shrugged, a serious demeanor radiating from his body, “Your other alternative is to tell them what Bobo is planning and try to get out of here before they come for you.”

“And be on the run for the rest of our lives?” Waverly asked incredulously, her eyes wide as her sister clearly considered what Dolls was saying.

“You’ll be on the run for the rest of your lives if you’re lucky,” Nicole chimed in darkly as her gaze moved across the group, “Believe me when I say that the net just gets bigger and bigger while the world gets smaller so to be on the run for the rest of your lives would be an achievement.”

“So we have to somehow figure out how to take Bobo and his gang of merry freaks,” Wynonna groaned, “This is definitely not how I thought my day would go today.”

“Maybe not but if we can stop him hurting people, then it’s worth it,” Waverly broke through the silence that filled the small cabin, “If we have the chance to do something, then we should. No matter what happens to us after, maybe we can change a few people’s minds and maybe one day that will make a difference.”

“That was an inspiring speech Waves, but it’s not going to mean much if we’re dead after working so hard to stay alive,” Wynonna broke to her sister as gently as she could, standing from the couch to approach her sister who only took a few steps away, “You’re not ready for that anyway, baby girl. We’re going to have to work out a way to do this without you.”

“Don’t you even start to suggest that with me,” Waverly warned through gritted teeth, “If Bobo wants me then I’ll give whatever I can to stop him but you can’t do this on your own. I’m sorry but you can’t do this without me.”

“You’re right, I can’t. Which is why I don’t want you getting involved because what happens if you hurt yourself or innocent people?” Wynonna’s voice was tender, concern clearly her first thought with her sister being her priority, “I’m not going through this just to lose you, Waves. We will figure something else out.”

“And what is that going to be?”

“I don’t know, that’s up to us to figure that out,” Wynonna said as her eyes landed on Nicole who had been spectating for most of the conversation, “What do you think, Haught?”

Nicole’s fingers tingled, her chest rising and falling harder than she wanted it to be but she found herself completely conflicted and confused. She had only gone to the homestead because she wanted to help Waverly, she was still hurt after what happened the previous day but she had to be honest with herself. She cared about the youngest Earp, her eyes shifted to Waverly who had a similar expression on her face. Something about Waverly stirred a feeling of both strength and weakness within herself like she had never felt before. Nicole couldn’t admit to herself just how much she still cared about Waverly and how much she wanted to help but that was until the self-preserving voice in her head reared it’s ugly face.

The Earps had planned to discard Nicole like a human sacrifice for their own safety until Waverly put her foot down for the redhead. She had worked so hard keep herself safe and everything about the situation that was going on in front of her caused alarm bells to ring in her head. Her head grew fuzzy, her thoughts becoming clouded and the air inside the cabin becoming thin as she mentally waged war within herself.

Instead of responding to Wynonna, she blinked heavily and rushed towards her front door. She heard Wynnona calling her name but she needed to get out of the small space and she needed to get out of there quickly. The air hit her lungs with a sting as she closed the door behind her, bending to rest her hands on her knees with her eyes shut and her heartbeat thudding inside her head. She heard the argument continue inside, feeling as if she couldn’t get enough air in her lungs and standing to place her hands on her head. She winced as the morning sun hit her eyes, causing her head to ache and feeling her neck sting after the few hours she spent sleeping in her car.

Nicole was in danger, she was in grave danger and every atom, every cell knew it but for some reason she didn’t feel like leaving was feasible either. It was clear that the threat was now not only Black Badge but it was Bobo and his group after their clash at the homestead. Normally at that point, Nicole would have cut her losses and she would have left but something anchored her to Purgatory or more likely, someone.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, her body tensing at the delicate touch as she turned around with a flame in her hand only to see the wide eyed brunette in front of her.

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” Waverly said cautiously, her eyes running over the rigidness that was Nicole’s body, “I just wanted to check on you. If I had of known we would drive you out of your own place I would have just told everyone to leave.”

“Maybe you should,” Nicole muttered weakly, not even having the strength to sound like she meant it, “Go, that is.”

“I got that,” Waverly responded with a sad smile, “I’m sorry you got dragged into this.”

“I guess I dragged myself into it,” Nicole sighed heavily, shaking the flame from her hand and running it through her hair slowly, “Are you okay?”

“I need to be the one asking you that,” Waverly replied, taking a step into the other girl, “You didn’t need to come to the homestead, you might have gotten yourself involved in something you don’t want to be involved with.”

“No one is making me involved with anything,” The redhead said slowly, carefully considering her words, “I came to help you because I thought you might be in trouble and I helped you.”

“But now Bobo is going to be after you.”

“Then I’ll deal with Bobo and whoever he sends my way but I helped you and now I’m done,” Nicole’s voice was quiet but serious simultaneously, “I care about you Waverly but I haven’t forgotten that it was only yesterday that you almost threw me to the wolves after I trusted you enough to reveal my abilities to you.”

“I know and I don’t expect you to want to be near me but I think you’re better off sticking with us for now then going it alone,” The brunette’s eyes were sincere but pained, “I know I blew it and I’m never going to be able to apologize enough to you but I can’t see you get hurt by Bobo because of us. He’s more dangerous than you think or want to admit to yourself.”

“He might be but I can’t get involved in whatever you have planned or whatever you’re going to plan,” Nicole responded with a shrug, “And I don’t think you can ask me to be, you can’t expect me to want to.”

“I don’t expect you to want to but I do expect you to want to survive,” Waverly answered with a shake of her head, “Wynonna’s going to have to accept that she needs my help but she already knows that she needs your help if she can get it. You’re powerful and you’d make a big difference holding off Bobo and his group he has with him.”

“If I want to survive then I’m better staying out of it,” Nicole protested with furrowed brows, “This doesn’t involve me and I’ve gotten really good to staying under the radar because it’s what has kept me alive so that’s what I’m going to do that.”

“But you don’t honestly think that, do you?” Waverly quipped with a challenging tone, “You let me in, Nicole. I know that’s why you’re so hurt and I can never apologize more for what I did but I know you honestly don’t believe that the right thing to do in this situation is just to fly under the radar. Even if you did want to, I’m not sure you’d be able to anyway.”

“It may not be what I want but it’s what I need to do to survive,” Nicole countered weakly, her hands shaking by her side, “That’s why I’m standing here and I haven’t been captured yet, that’s why I was even able to meet you.”

“But what if surviving meant being a part of something bigger than yourself, which is what this is,”  
 Waverly sighed heavily, “We know we have our backs against the wall here, we know that this would be a long shot and I don’t know about you but I would rather be captured for saving the lives of innocent people than be captured for doing nothing or trying to stay under the radar.”

“Says the girl who struck a deal to trade information about people just like her, people more innocent than those people who will be in the gym that watch this happen to us and do nothing,” Nicole snapped resentfully, hearing the anger in her voice and exhaling roughly, “Waverly, I appreciate what you are trying to do but I’m only a part of this because of you and your actions.”

“Then you can understand that I am only doing this because we need you and so do those people that Bobo is planning on slaughtering. Are you going to be able to look at yourself if this happens and you do nothing?” The brunette questioned seriously, her brows furrowing, “He’s going to come after you and you might think that you can handle him but you can’t. Not when he has all of those people with him, you might take a few of them out but if he comes after you, you’re going to need help.”

“You really think that us stepping in and stopping Bobo is going to do anything to change Black Badge’s mind? You trust Dolls?”

“What other option do we have?” The youngest Earp challenged instantly, “Because as of right now, I don’t really think we have another one. If we can do something to make the lives of other powered individuals better by showing that we’re not the monsters politicians have made us out to be then I think this is worth the risk.”

“It’s not a risk, Waves. It’s a guaranteed suicide mission,” Nicole’s voice dropping in intensity as she watched the passion on the brunette’s face, “After exposing me to Black Badge, you’re now asking me to be a part of a suicide mission that I’m not sure can succeed. On top of that, I don’t even know if I can trust you as a group.”

“Why did you come to the homestead this morning?” The heavy sigh that left Waverly’s lips gave her an indication of her frustration, “Why did you risk yourself when you knew Black Badge could be watching you?”

“Because I knew it was coming from the homestead and I was worried about you,” Nicole answered without flinching, “But I already told you that, Waves. I care about you but if I trust you again and it backfires then that’s on me.”

“And I care about you too, which is why I went through what I did to stop Black Badge from coming after you. I care about you more than I’m ready to admit to myself but I have to accept it because you don’t seem to give me another choice,” Waverly’s expression softened, taking a stride forward and reaching her hand out to take a hold of Nicole’s, “I feel that and I can’t pretend that I don’t. I know this is my fault, this is my responsibility to tidy up the mess I made; which I fully intend on doing but I need a chance. I need you to give me a chance because when I met you, for the first time I have felt safe and accepted for who I am rather than this façade I put on for everyone else. You’ve seen the worst of me and you still came to help us when we needed it the most. You make the noise go away and you make it easier to control myself so you might not need me Nicole, but I sure as hell need you.”

“What you’re getting into…what you’re asking me isn’t something small,” Nicole responded as her chest rose and fell in time with Waverly’s, “This is how I’ve survived, this is why I’ve stayed alone for so long. You’re asking me to put my faith in people who have already betrayed me once.”

“I’m asking you to give me a second chance after realizing what a mistake I made by letting it get as far as it did,” Waverly took one more step into the redhead, their faces so close that they were almost breathing the same breath, “If we don’t do anything to stop Bobo after knowing what he is planning then we are just as bad as he is and I know you care or you wouldn’t have brought me here. You can trust me and I’ll prove it to you but we need your help, _I_ need your help.”

“I can’t give you an answer right now and I might not be able to give you the answer you want,” Nicole’s voice scratching against her throat when she spoke, the rawness in her tone a testament to the power Waverly held over her being as close as she was, “I hear what you are saying but right now, I just need to be alone. I don’t know if this is going to make things worse or better and if I commit to this, I need to make sure that whatever happens will be worth it.”

“We don’t have much time.”

“I know but that’s all I can offer you right now,” Nicole responded with a shrug, giving Waverly’s hand a gentle squeeze before relinquishing the grip on the brunette’s hand, “You’re safe now and I’m glad but that doesn’t change what happened yesterday, it doesn’t change what your sister wanted you to do.”

“I just need you to think about this, okay?” Waverly asked with desperation in her tone, spilling with sincerity, “Don’t think about me, think about the kids at our school that are going to need our help with Bobo comes to the pep rally. They might be selfish and they might say stupid things but they don’t deserve to be murdered for it. Change doesn’t happen overnight, this might not make a difference right now but if we can see an opportunity to change people’s minds about us, even just a little, I think we should take it.”

“Okay.” Nicole muttered, her eyes dropping to her feet as her bottom lip quivered subtly.

She was mad, she was scared, she was vulnerable but most of all she was worried for what this plan meant for Waverly and her wellbeing. The tightness in her chest wouldn’t go away as she felt the uncomfortable heat run through her body; feeling the need to hold her head in place before it spun into the sky with everything that was happening around her. She felt everything still when Waverly moved her cool fingers to tilt Nicole’s face to the side slightly, standing on her toes to place a soft and lingering kiss on the redhead’s cheek.

Nicole’s eyes slammed shut, swallowing thickly as Waverly’s gentle lips touched her skin so delicately that she was afraid to move. Her body tensed as the smaller woman’s lips left her cheek and her stomach felt as if it had exploded in a series of fireworks, which only left her mind to ponder what kissing the other woman would feel like.

She licked her lips at the thought, opening her mouth to speak Waverly’s name as she heard her front door open only to see the rest of the group on their way out once her eyes fluttered open. The brunette stayed close to Nicole’s side, not hiding the fact that they had just shared an intimate moment as Wynonna, Doc and Dolls brushed passed the pair on the way to the jeep. Nicole’s eyes stayed on the woman next to her, Waverly’s attention focused on her sister whilst they moved to leave the property.

“Thank you for your help, Haught.” She heard Wynonna utter sincerely, words forming in her mind to respond but she was too slow to reply in kind.

She felt Waverly give her forearm a gentle squeeze, trailing her fingers down to Nicole’s already tingling fingers when she moved to walk away; her gentle touch urging the redhead to reconsider everything she thought she knew.

She felt as if she were in slow motion when she watched the group leave in the jeep, her throat opening when she heard the hum of the engine leave the range of her ears. Nicole could feel it in her veins, the fire burning throughout her as Waverly’s words danced through her ears and sat in the back of her mind. If she let whatever Bobo was planning on doing happen, she would be just as bad as Bobo himself but she knew she would be taking her greatest risk if she decided to help Waverly, Wynonna, Doc and Dolls. They needed Waverly to use her abilities if they had a shot at beating Bobo, the numbers game would prove too much otherwise but Nicole didn’t want Waverly to hurt herself or those around her knowing what something like that would do to the brunette’s sensitive but tough soul.

Flames engulfed Nicole’s hands, clenching her jaw tightly as she tried to comprehend the range of emotions and thoughts she was having because of the town of Purgatory. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, the flames extinguishing themselves as she realized that whether she wanted to admit to or not, she was deeply implicated in the situation; no matter what angle she looked at it. She wasn’t going to get any sleep that night and it was going to be a long day, feeling herself finding rationale in skipping school that day after everything had happened.

The clock was ticking, it was only 9 days until the pep rally; 9 days until the entire world would change for one reason or another or at the very least, the town of Purgatory. She needed to decide on which side of the fence in the history of powered individuals she stood should Wynonna go ahead with her plan in trying to stop Bobo from making a statement. As the thoughts streamed through her head, the skin on her cheek tingled where Waverly’s lips had just been; unable to stop her stomach from churning as the slow realisation of the grip the brunette unwillingly had placed over Nicole. Nothing spoke to Nicole more than that feeling, knowing Waverly had betrayed her but had also risked her life to prevent Black Badge from taking her as she easily could have. At that point, her mind was made up; she just had to convince herself and every instinct inside her body that she could survive outside of the shadows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!  
> Happy New Year! I've added another chapter to this story because I've had to split two huge chapters. Hope you all enjoy this one, it's a little slower after the last one until the end but I hope you like it anyway!

Her legs ached, her lungs burned and her mind was screaming for her to stop at that very moment. She wasn’t sure when it was going to end, she just knew no matter what; she only had to be faster than the person behind her. Cold air burned her throat, making it difficult to breathe as she moved as quickly as her body would take her; feeling relief as she heard the whistle blow loudly. She slowed her stride to a slow jog, the whistle signaling the end of the final time trial before the track meet that was scheduled for the day after the pep rally. She slowly made her way back to the starting line, pushing her body to move more than it wanted to so she could get her bag and hopefully be excused for the rest of the evening.

Nicole rubbed her eyes roughly, moving her hand to her mouth to stifle the yawn that threatened to escape whilst she tied up her running spikes. Amongst everything else, Nicole had to remember that she was part of the Purgatory Devils track and field squad; meaning she had to show up to training despite everything that had happened over the last few days.

The clock was ticking, Nicole understood that and there were only 6 days left until the pep rally but she hadn’t uttered a word to Waverly since she had left the cabin. She stayed inside all weekend, struggling to comprehend all of the information she had been given and trying even harder to push it aside. It wasn’t that Nicole didn’t want to talk to Waverly, despite her best efforts to hold a grudge against the other girl, she couldn’t. She was still free; Black Badge hadn’t come near her since that night and her conversation with Waverly outside her cabin weighed heavily on her mind.

She was right, about everything. She was right when she called Nicole out for wanting to hide in the shadows, protecting herself rather than using her abilities to make a positive change. She was right when she said she knew Nicole didn’t really want to stay away from what was happening and she was right when she said Nicole would be just as bad as Bobo if she didn’t do something to stop whatever had been planned.

Nicole knew all of it, she hadn’t stopped thinking about it since Waverly left but it didn’t mean that she was feeling confident about it. The group needed Waverly, she was too powerful to sit on the sidelines and Wynonna needed to admit that. What worried Nicole was that her stubbornness would get the better of her and prevent the group from overcoming already heavily disadvantaged odds.

“Did you need some help tying your shoes there?” Nicole was forced quickly from her thoughts, coming back to reality at the sound of a relatively unfamiliar voice.

She looked up from the ground, standing to her feet so quickly that her head spun after the blood rushed from her brain.

“Chrissy, hi.” Nicole said awkwardly, looking at the girl in front of her with a confused expression.

Chrissy was a friend of Waverly’s, someone whom she had interacted with a handful of times and had only spoken to her when the youngest Earp sister was present. She wore her cheer jacket, her hair tied in a tight ponytail with a smirk playing on her lips.

“You were on fire out there,” Chrissy added with a wink, Nicole eyeing the woman in front of her cautiously as she tried to decide whether there was meaning behind her words or she was just using a turn of phrase, “I haven’t seen you much at school this week.”

“I’ve been sick,” Nicole said simply with a shrug, bringing her hand to push a bead of sweat from her forehead, “Is everything okay?”

“Well I saw you running and I realized that I haven’t had the chance to talk to you on your own before,” Chrissy responded, her answer quick and full of confidence, “Whenever I see you around, you’re always talking to Waverly.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true,” Nicole rubbed her neck awkwardly, not knowing what Chrissy’s motive was in talking to her, “I guess that’s probably because I don’t spend more time here than I need to.”

“I feel you there,” Chrissy nodded with a grin, “More to my point though, you didn’t sit with Waverly today and you both look like you haven’t slept for like a week. Has something happened between you two?”

“What? Why would you say that?” Nicole’s eyes went wide, failing to hide her surprise or panic at Chrissy’s admission.

“Well, now I know it’s true,” Chrissy chuckled, “I knew Waverly liked you but I didn’t know if there was anything going on. Turns out there was.”

“No, there’s nothing going on,” Nicole shook her head, holding her hands up in front of her body defensively, “Why do you think she likes me?”

“Because she can’t keep her eyes off you and I’ve been her friend for a long time. I can tell when Waverly likes someone and she definitely likes you,” Chrissy added before taking a subtle step towards Nicole, “But you’re saying there’s nothing going on?”

It hit Nicole like a ton of bricks, Chrissy Nedley seemed to be flirting with her. A lump appeared in her throat instantly, the interaction came out of nowhere with the redhead never seeing Chrissy anywhere besides next to Waverly. Movement caught her eye behind Chrissy, seeing Waverly watching the interaction with her arms folded her chest with her lips pursed and her eyebrows furrowed.

Nicole wanted to groan when she saw the anger on Waverly’s face, unsure how to handle the actual teenage drama she knew she was about to experience with everything else that was resting firmly on her shoulders.

“I…I’m not…” Nicole struggled to express herself in the situation, her eyes drifting to Waverly once more who was now approaching the pair, “There’s Waverly.”

“Chrissy, we’re supposed to be warming up,” Waverly interrupted, her eyes glancing to Nicole but firmly setting on her friend, “It’s cold and we need you for the sequence for the pep rally.”

“I’m just talking to Nicole,” Chrissy said simply, waving off her friend, “Waves, I’ve been texting you all weekend about practice today and I heard nothing from you so I didn’t even know if you were going to come at all.”

“I’m captain, of course I was going to come,” Waverly snapped impatiently, “The rest of the girls are getting ready and you’re here talking.”

“I just saw Nicole here by herself and thought I could come over and say hi,” Chrissy countered with a frown, “I thought I was just being nice but I don’t even want to touch what is going on between you two.”

With those words, Chrissy turned on her heel and walked quickly towards the rest of the squad; which left Nicole standing alone with Waverly.

“I don't know what it looked like but I wasn't sure why she was talking to me,” Nicole defended quickly, identifying the annoyance on Waverly’s face equalled jealousy brewing inside of her, “She came over to me.”

“Well I know you didn’t start talking to her because that would mean you actually spoke to someone today,” Waverly countered defiantly, shaking her head, “Every time I tried to talk to you, even just to say hi; you avoided me like a disease.”

“What was I supposed to say to you right now, Waverly?” Nicole asked with a furrowed brow, surprised the sharpness in Waverly’s words, “After everything that happened over the weekend, did you really expect me to come up to you like nothing changed?”

“No but I didn’t expect you to walk away from me when I took a step in your direction when we have 6 days to try and figure out how the hell we’re going to stop a gym full of students from being murdered.”

“I don’t know what to tell you,” The redhead muttered with another shrug, guilt slowly seeping through her body, “This isn’t an easy or simple situation. What you’re asking me to do…”

“Is a lot, I know but do you think for a second I want to be involved in this either? Do you think I want you dragged into any of this?” Waverly’s voice rose as she spoke, pausing to glance around her before she continued what she was saying, “You probably don’t want to see me, I get that. I get that I blew any chance I had with you but this whole situation is bigger than the both of us and I thought you would understand that.”

“You can’t put any of this on me, Waverly,” Nicole’s jaw tightened, her temperature heightening, “I came to help you the other morning when I didn’t need to because despite everything, I still care about you but what you’re asking of me is a lot.”

“I’ve only asked you to think about it because I thought I knew you better than I clearly do.” Waverly spoke dismissively before she turned to walk away; giving Nicole every opportunity to stop her but the redhead stood frozen in her place.

Everything that Waverly had said to her was correct once more and she was well within her rights to talk to Nicole like she had. The redhead watched Waverly rush back to her squad, not knowing whether it was the cold air or the weight of the situation that was making her limbs tingle but she knew if she stayed outside for much longer she would make herself sick.

Her head shook, angry at herself for not being able to stop Waverly from leaving but also frustrated at being placed in the almost impossible position. Her legs felt almost as heavy as her thoughts as her mind began to buzz like it had for the past few days, catching Chrissy throw her an awkward glance as Nicole turned to grab her things and leave. She couldn’t leave Purgatory High soon enough, rushing home to her cabin only to throw her bags on the floor. She sat with her back against the front door, her head buried deep in her hands with her elbows resting on her knees. The redhead didn’t know how long she sat there for, she wasn’t sure how much time had passed as she delved into her thoughts. The way she saw it, she had 2 options and these 2 options were the only things she could consider as being relevant or accurate.

Her first option would be to run, like she usually did when the heat became too much. She was very good at moving from place to place, just escaping the grasp of authorities before they could locate her. It would mean leaving Purgatory and pulling up the small roots she had planted but she always knew that would be a possibility when she moved there in the first place. She wasn’t ever expecting to stay in one place permanently; as much as she was on the run from authorities, she was also on the run from herself and the overwhelming thoughts that her parents would never accept her or she would never see them again. She pushed and she fought whenever those whispers entered her mind but when she stayed in one place for too long, those thoughts became deafening.

Her second option would be to stay and fight Bobo, risking everything, including her life to save students who weren’t as innocent as first thought but they also hadn’t done anything to warrant what was coming to them. What Bobo was trying to do was set an example, flex the muscle that was the abilities of the powered individuals. He wanted to strike fear amongst everyone across the country, even the globe and he wanted it to symbolise a war cry of those who had been mistreated for what they were born into. Nicole saw his reasoning; she saw why he would want to do something to disrupt the current order but killing hundreds of teenagers would only delight authorities and would enable them to strip the little human rights people like them had left. He would make the few who were sympathetic to their kind, turn on them at the blink of an eye and that wouldn’t help anyone.

There was no guarantee what would happen to them after they stopped Bobo, if they could stop him and his group at all. She could be taken away, she could be killed but for the first time in her life, she saw the cause worth fighting for and worth risking capture. Waverly Earp was right, it was bigger than any of them; it was about what would happen to those who were still alive and those who were in captivity. What happened in the small town of Purgatory had every chance of changing the course of powered individuals for generations to come. She had a responsibility as a free individual to try and protect people who were just like her, to protect those who were yet to discover they were different whether she wanted to accept it or not.

She hadn’t planned for this small town to shake her world up as fiercely as it had, she didn’t ever think she would find someone like she had that was worth the risk of exposing her abilities. Waverly Earp was a rare find in a world so cold, obligated to turn Nicole in only to fight back against those who held so much power over her. Overwhelmingly, the Earp sisters accepted their fate in the situation without even blinking, acknowledging what they were facing took precedence over their own comfort or safety. Waverly was right and Nicole didn’t need to mull it over any longer than she already had. She pushed herself from the door, taking her keys and not stopping her car until she rolled up to the front of the homestead. Her hands tightened around the steering wheel, her throat dry and her heart pounding when she prepared herself for the impending conversation with Waverly that was looming.

The brunette saw Nicole coming, appearing out the front door before Nicole had the chance to leave her car. She looked smaller and more vulnerable than usual, bundled up tightly in a jacket a few sizes too big for her that reached all the way down to her knees with grey sweatpants and boots capping off her cozy outfit. Her hair was out, wavy and damp as if it had just been washed; a sight that that sucked the air from the redhead’s lungs and pulled at her heart tighter than she wanted to admit. As she opened her car door, letting the now freezing air hit her; she realised that she was going to be powerless to try and resist the storm of feelings inside her that had started brewing from the moment she laid eyes on the other girl. She approached the homestead wordlessly, stopping short of the other girl who still stood with the door ajar; watching the redhead curiously.

“You’re right,” The words Nicole uttered were the only ones she could produce, seeing her breath in the light leaving the house, “Everything you said, you’re right.”

“I am?” Waverly raised her eyebrows, her expression softer than any Nicole had witnessed before.

“You told me that change doesn’t happen overnight and if we have a chance to do something about what is going on out in the world and you’re right,” Nicole felt a sense of strange contentment rising within her, knowing she wasn’t choosing the easy road but she was choosing the right one, “You made a mistake, it might not be easy for me to understand or accept for a while but you risked everything to save me and I have to thank you for that. You asked me to think about it and I did, I’m in. Whatever that means, I’m in.”

“Are you sure?” Waverly questioned shakily, the smallest of smiles pulling at the corners of her lips.

“I’m not totally sure exactly what I’m getting myself into but whatever it is, yes.” Nicole responded with a nod, confidence growing in her the more she thought about it.

Nicole’s thoughts were interrupted by small arms wrapping around her neck, a blur of brown hair covering her eyes as her nose tingled with the smell of Waverly’s shampoo. She quickly shook herself from her thoughts, feeling a heavy weight fall off her shoulders; letting her arms snake around Waverly’s waist slowly. That moment felt right, despite everything that happened; Nicole had to admit that to herself as she felt everything inside of her tremble at the close contact with the youngest Earp.

“I’m so sorry, for everything,” Waverly muttered into Nicole’s neck, her lips brushing against the redhead’s cool skin, “I didn’t mean to snap at you before after school. Honestly, if I were in your shoes, I would avoid me too.”

“You didn’t do anything but tell me what you thought and you had every right to,” Nicole’s eyes fluttered closed momentarily before Waverly pulled away, only for their faces to be inches apart, “Trust isn’t going to happen instantly but you said you wanted a chance so I’ll give you it. If you think I can help stop Bobo do whatever he’s planning, then I’m willing to try.”

“Why don’t we go inside where it’s not freezing?” Waverly suggested with a sympathetic look on her face, her eyes glancing to Nicole’s lips momentarily, “You’ve got to be cold.”

“Not really,” Nicole moved her hand from the brunette’s waist, a small spark lighting to form a warm flame whilst a faint smirk appeared on her face, “I kind of keep myself warm.”

“Well I’ll be glad to have you around for winters if I can,” Waverly joked lightly, awkwardness filling the air as Nicole shook the flame from her hand when the brunette gently tugged her inside.

The door closed quietly, Nicole took in the relatively dark homestead for only the third time; the first time though that she hadn’t been rushed inside or taking over near the kitchen. More windows were boarded up than the last time she saw the house, a few pieces of broken furniture set aside in the corner of the room.

“Can I get you anything?” The brunette’s voice interrupted her thoughts, pulling her attention back to where she was, “Wynonna and Doc are with Dolls tonight so it’s just me for now. I wasn’t expecting company to be honest so I don’t really have much.”

“I’m fine,” Nicole mumbled with a small nod, “I’m the one who just came here unannounced…”

“Are you okay if we go up to my room and talk?” Waverly asked cautiously, her labored exhale not lost on Nicole.

“Yeah, of course.”

The two girls walked silently up to Waverly’s room, the brunette closing the door behind them; her hands at her back while she leaned against them. The two looked at each other wordlessly for more than a moment, both not knowing what to say and willing the other to speak. A small smile appeared on Waverly’s face, soon spreading to Nicole’s before they broke out into quiet, awkward laughter.

“This has been a hell of a few weeks, huh?” Waverly responded with a sigh as the smile faded from her face, “I was really surprised to see you here.”

“I know but I shouldn’t have treated you like I did today.”

“No, I deserved it and I don’t expect you to forget what I allowed to happen in the first place but I do hope at some point you can forgive me,” The brunette offered cautiously, “I’ll do whatever I need to, I know I keep saying that but I mean it.”

“I know and I want to give you that chance,” Nicole replied with a nod, standing at the edge of Waverly’s bed. She ran her fingers slowly across the mountain of soft blankets, looking up to quirk an eyebrow, “Did you steal these from every person in town?”

“I get cold,” Waverly said defensively, quipping playfully, “We’ve got a lot to talk about besides my blankets.”

“I’ll start then,” Nicole took a second to think before she let the words leave her mouth, “I’m sorry I haven’t spoken to you since I took you to the cabin, I just needed time to think everything through. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to talk to you, I wanted to talk to you every day but I just needed to know my mind was made up about this. What you said to me about being as bad as Bobo if I didn’t do anything was right and I don’t think I could stay away from this even if it’s the smartest thing for me to do.”

“You wouldn’t be as bad as him, there’s nothing you could do that would make you as bad as him,” Waverly conceded with a shake of her head, keeping her position against the door, “You’ve kept yourself free for so long by staying on the run and keeping your head low so I understand why you’re reluctant about it.”

“I’m not reluctant about it anymore,” The redhead explained slowly, “What’s the point in me being free if I can’t try and do something that could make a difference to those of us who aren’t? This is bigger than me, this is bigger than what’s happened between us so far.”

“It is but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to talk about that,” Waverly’s voice firming as she held Nicole’s gaze in her own, “I’m not sure I’m ever going to be able to tell you how sorry I am.”

“Wynonna told me when I was walking out of the diner that you tried to keep the fact that I was powered from her and you fought to protect me,” Nicole confessed weakly, bringing her hand to run through her hair, “She told me that you were more resourceful than she thought and I don’t know what that means but I know you looked like hell when you came to the diner after black badge was there so whatever you did, however you did it; I owe you for protecting me.”

“It was my fault to begin with.”

“When Wynonna said that, what did she mean?” The redhead questioned out of curiosity more than anything.

“Black Badge have people like us who work for them, I have no idea why but they’re loyal to black badge. One particular guy, one particular bastard should I say, can enter minds without people even knowing it but he can also make it really painful when he chooses to,” Waverly picked her words thoughtfully, “And whenever he comes to me he usually chooses to do just that but I’ve learnt I’m strong enough to deflect him if I work hard enough which is what I did when they didn’t find you at home. It hurt like hell and it was exhausting but it was totally worth every second.”

“You put yourself through that for me?” Nicole was taken aback slightly, she didn’t remember the last time she felt protected by someone else or cared for like that.

“Well I caused it, so yeah,” Waverly responded with a heavy sigh and a sad smile, “They come around and abuse their power every few weeks, they’ve fallen into quite the routine because they think I could be unstable.”

“I don’t think you’re unstable, Waves. I just think you have a lot of power inside of you and you haven’t quite worked out how to handle that yet,” Nicole was sympathetic to Waverly in that moment, knowing the battles it took for her to control her own abilities and knew how difficult it could be, “But you will. These things tend to happen when they’re really needed whether you’re ready or not and by the sounds of it, we’re going to need you to stop Bobo.”

“I might need you to tell my sister that,” Waverly shook her head, pushing off the door to hold her hands out in front of her; her palms facing up, “She’s right on a lot of things but this isn’t one of them. Bobo is afraid of me, whether he would ever admit it or not but I won’t ever forget the look of fear in his eyes when I threw him out of the barn after he killed daddy.”

“Maybe you need to just tell her that yourself, as many times as it takes,” Nicole’s heart felt heavy looking at Waverly. She looked down at her hands with such sadness and frustration, as if thinking she was a burden to everyone and she understood the exact feeling that was coursing through her body, “Listen, this stuff isn’t easy and I can’t imagine how difficult it is for you being as powerful as I think you are but if you’re right then Wynonna is going to figure out that she can’t have you sitting on the sidelines. You’re too important for that, especially now.”

“It just makes me worry what happens if I can’t control my abilities and I just make things worse?”

“What usually happens when you feel like you’re going to lose control over what you can do?” Nicole questioned quietly, “What exactly can you do?”

“That kind of changes everyday because honestly, I’ve kind of been figuring it out as I go,” The brunette looked up to meet Nicole’s gaze, both pausing at the intensity in their stare, “I can do anything from moving an object with my mind like throwing someone across the room or make them unable to move at all to changing the roll of a dice to choking someone without even thinking about touching them. I can do a lot of scary stuff but it can be fun sometimes too, I don’t use my abilities a lot because Wynonna kind of thinks it’s unfair when we watch TV and I change the channel but I know there is a lot I don’t know about myself.”

“So you could stop me from moving or control my movements if you wanted to?” Nicole raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“If I wanted to be a dick, sure,” Waverly chuckled to herself quietly, “Just because I have the ability to do something, doesn’t mean I should. I’ve got the hang of those things but the bigger stuff that’s going to help us beat Bobo, I have no idea how to do yet. I should be able to stop him from using his abilities or hold all of his group at once but I can’t and when I feel like I might be able to, I get the feeling I’m going to lose control and I stop.”

“What happens when you lose control?” Nicole asked once more, trying to take in the information that Waverly was sharing rapidly.

“Sometimes I don’t even know I’m about to, sometimes it’s just because I’m stressed or worried but it always starts the same way,” The brunette confessed, pulling the zip down on her jacket and shrugging it off her shoulders, letting it slide down her arms; revealing a light pink tight fitting sweater that hugged Waverly in all the right places and causing Nicole high levels of distraction despite her best efforts, “It starts with some kind of buzzing in my body, it spreads from my toes, up through my arms and up to my head. Everything around me starts to fade away into the background and I hear a rush in my head, like a big gust of wind. When it gets to that point, I lose all control over what’s going to happen and you’ve seen the end result. Things just break or people get pushed away like I did to Bobo; that’s what Wynonna is worried about. She’s worried about me becoming so overwhelmed that I can’t control my actions but strangely, you kind of settle things down for me.”

“I do remember you saying that,” Nicole responded with a small smile playing on her lips. She couldn’t deny how adorable Waverly was on the other side of the room. Her oversized jacket in her arms, her thoughtful expression topped off with a cutely quirked eyebrow, “I’m sorry that you’ve been going through all of this since your dad died.”

“You’re the one who was on the run in the first place because your parents,” Waverly countered as she tried to deflect any of Nicole’s sympathy, “And that isn’t why I told you all of that. I just want to be honest with you and I don’t want any secrets between us, at least on my end because that’s what you deserve from me.”

“Thank you,” She exhaled deeply, feeling herself give into the invisible but almost tangible magnetism that pulled her towards Waverly in more senses than one. Waverly had done nothing but try and protect Nicole from everything that had been thrown at them and she knew whatever was to come; the brunette would do the same again, “If you’re being totally honest with me, can I ask you something?”

“Anything.” The genuineness in her tone sending a shiver down the redhead’s spine as their eyes stayed locked.

“When we were at school earlier and you saw Chrissy talking to me…”

“I was jealous,” Waverly spoke before Nicole could even finish what she was saying, a resigned and embarrassed look on her face, “I mean, I have no right to be and I don’t think I have any reason to be if I’m right but I let that little green eyed monster escape when I didn’t want it to. Chrissy has a way of getting what she wants all the time being the Sheriff’s daughter and she’s mentioned you a few times to me but I’ve always been way too caught up in everything else to realize what she is saying.”

“You’re right, you don’t have any reason to be,” She shrugged quickly, her eyes dropping to Waverly’s lips again as she saw the brunette’s tongue peak out to wet them subtly, “She came over to me and just started talking.”

“I know, I figured you wouldn’t have talked to her first,” The small brunette reasoned with a nod, “I just wasn’t thinking because you weren’t talking to me but then I saw you talking to her so I got jealous.”

“I guess I didn’t really help the situation when I didn’t talk to you, I just didn’t know what to say.”

“Honestly, I was surprised to see you at school at all,” Waverly added, her eyes pulling away from Nicole’s to look down at her jacket, “I kind of thought you might have taken off and I wouldn’t have blamed you for it.”

“I thought about it but I couldn’t,” Nicole voiced with honesty, “I think you and I just need to put this behind us. We both know how each other feel and we both know we have suffered enough over the past few weeks.”

“I haven’t been able to sleep much since we left your cabin,” Waverly said with a sense of awkwardness, “I guess if I’m being totally honest, I haven’t really been able to sleep since you came to the homestead for the first time.”

“Waves, I want this to be the last time we talk about what happened that night,” Nicole spoke after sighing quietly, her brain being overwhelmed by the sheer need to reassure and comfort the woman in front of her. She swallowed thickly, her heart starting to thump under her rib-cage as she took a few steps forward towards Waverly; whose eyes instantly shifted back to the redhead, “You’ve clearly suffered enough over this and we’re on the same page. I want to do whatever I can to help stop Bobo before he hurts anyone again and I think the first step to doing that is showing Wynonna that we need you front and centre; not sitting on the sidelines. We just need to move forward.”

“We do?” Her voice was vulnerable, not weak or disinterested but quiet and unstable; like a sense of understanding that something unstoppable and uncontrollable was about to take place.

“Yeah, we really do,” Nicole’s voice grew just as quiet as Waverly’s as her eyes dipped once more to the brunette’s lips, “I think what we need for this to work is a clean slate. We just need to start again and try to forget about what happened before right now.”

“Can you do that?” Waverly’s voice was raw as it scraped against her throat.

The tension only grew thicker between the two women, like they had been thrust underwater and could only hear the muffled sounds around them whilst their concentration was completely focused on each other. Nicole felt a buzzing in her stomach and her lips tingled; her body was almost aching to feel what Waverly’s lips felt like against her own.  
Nicole could only nod, being unable to form a complete sentence at that moment because before Waverly had even placed a period on the end of her sentence; she took the few strides towards the redhead so their lips could finally meet.

The brunette dropped her jacket at their feet before her hands rose to rest just under Nicole’s jaw, her fingers tangling into her red hair as every sensory nerve felt like it was exploding inside of her body. Nicole wrapped her arms tightly around the brunette’s waist, pulling Waverly’s waist flush against her own; the smallest of hums leaving the smaller woman’s mouth. The kiss was urgent, rushed like they would never get a chance to do it again but after weeks of overlying tensions and not so subtle hints; it was clear that they had waited long enough.

Waverly’s lips were the softest she had ever had the pleasure of kissing, only adding to a sensation that Nicole could only try to describe. She felt her entire body vibrate in place, feeling an overwhelming sense of belonging and contentment as their lips danced eagerly. Nicole’s right hand curled into a fist with her fingers tangled into the material of Waverly’s shirt; not knowing what happened until the brunette’s back was up against her door. She felt Waverly’s tongue gently move across her lower lip, urging them to part slightly to deepen the kiss and Nicole did just that.

The redhead had to stop herself from groaning, feeling Waverly’s tongue against her own as it moved subtly and gently; slowing as the kiss began to grow tender. Her heart was racing but she felt as if everything around her had slowed down to an almost complete stop and her fingers tingled like only her abilities could top as they brushed against the bare skin of Waverly’s waist. Before she knew what she was doing, she took Waverly’s bottom lip between her teeth as gently as she could manage, tugging on it slowly only to feel the brunette’s grip on her hair tighten.

It was something that Nicole had been missing her whole life, a feeling of belonging, a sense of understanding that she was where she was supposed to be; home. She had never felt anything like it, like a dozen puzzle piece’s shifting into the right position all at once and she could only hope that Waverly felt a similar way.

It was Nicole who pulled back first, her eyes wide after fluttering open, her chest heaving and her hands still holding Waverly’s body as close to her own as she could manage. The smaller woman looked up at her with such emotion, such care that it almost made Nicole’s insides explode immediately. She shifted her hand to Nicole’s cheek, her thumb brushing against the redhead’s lower lip slowly before bringing their lips together again for a soft, slow, tender kiss. It was brief but it told Nicole all that she needed to know as she tilted her head slightly to rest her forehead against Waverly’s, feeling a warm palm pressing against her upper chest gently.

She swallowed thickly as their breathing slowed in tandem, both not being able to utter a word for what felt like years; just staying in the same position with their bodies as close as possible. Waverly pulled her forehead back so that their noses were inches apart with Nicole still tilting her head slightly.

“Holy crap.” Was all Waverly muttered hoarsely, a quiet chuckle leaving her lips as a grin pulled at Nicole’s.

“Holy crap about sums it up,” Nicole replied after clearing her throat, surprised she could form a sentence, “That’s one great start to a clean slate.”

“I’m sorry, I probably should have asked first,” Waverly whispered with a shake of her head, “I just had to kiss you, I was going to explode if I didn’t.”

“It’s okay, I thought I was about to combust too,” Nicole reassured the other woman, feeling a redness rise on her cheeks as she realized she still had a tight grip of Waverly’s shirt, “Do your abilities include being a really great kisser or is that just Waverly?”

“Honestly, I was going to ask you the same thing,” Waverly chuckled quietly, exhaling shakily as she raised her eyebrows, “Wow.”

“Yeah,” The redhead muttered shyly, using all of her self-control to release her grip from Waverly and take a step away from the brunette. She couldn’t help but notice just how quickly she wanted to be close to Waverly again, missing the warmth of their bodies pressed together instantaneously, “If I don’t move away from you right now, I don’t know if I ever will.”

“That was way better than I imagined and I imagined it to be pretty fantastic,” Waverly joked, the husk in her voice only growing, “You really want a clean slate?”

“I want to give you that chance to show I can trust you and I need to prove that you can trust me too,” Nicole responded seriously, pulling her head backwards slightly so she could look the brunette in the eyes, “After all of this is done and we hopefully survive I want to get to know the real Waverly, behind what you allow people to see.”

“Are you sure you want that?” The brunette questioned, her eyes dropping Nicole’s gaze, “I mean, I break windows when I’m mad, I’m headstrong, stubborn and Wynonna seems to think I can kill everyone around me if I push myself far enough.”

“That’s all I want,” Nicole shifted her hand to Waverly’s face, hooking her index finger under the smaller woman’s chin to tilt her head upwards, “You would never lose yourself that much that you would harm so many people you care about, I know that much about you at least.”

The sound of the front door opening downstairs interrupted their conversation, neither woman shifting from their close position just yet; their hands staying firmly planted where they were.

“That’s probably Wynonna.” Waverly’s voice cracked under her hushed tone.

“I should talk to her, explain what I just went through with you,” Nicole spoke with a nod before she exhaled and took a reluctant step away from Waverly who held the same look of disappointment as empty space was placed between them, “I mean she is bound to come up here anyway.”

“Well what are you doing tonight?” Waverly asked almost too quickly, “Wynonna is probably going back out later; you could stay tonight.”

“I think…maybe I should go home,” Nicole’s body betrayed her, feeling the ache in her bones as it fought against her to do anything but leave, “For tonight anyway. Honestly, I would love to stay but it’s probably best that I go.”

“Probably,” Waverly resigned after a moment of deliberation, “I do need to get some sleep and that might be tough having you next to me.”

“I think it could go either way,” Nicole joked lightly, feeling a warmth push from her chest when she watched the brunette laugh quietly, “I should go talk to Wynonna.”

“I’ll come with and I’ll walk you out.”

“I’d like that.” The two girls looked at each other momentarily before the message reached their brains through all of the haze and they made their way down the stairs.

They found a smug Wynonna sitting at the kitchen table with a box full of donuts and a glass of whiskey in front of her; peacemaker within her reach.

“I was pretty surprised to see your car here when I got home,” Wynonna said with the slightest of slurs, “I’m not totally sure I should have been driving but no one was hurt and here I am.”

“Here you are,” Nicole replied with wide eyes, glancing to Waverly whose mood had instantly shifted and her expression hardened, “And I was just going.”

“Where have you been?” Waverly questioned suspiciously, gesturing to the whiskey in front of her sister, “We’re going through a crisis and you come home drunk?”

“I’m tipsy, I’m definitely not drunk baby girl,” Wynonna defended lightly, rolling her eyes when she saw her sister’s mood was unchanged, “And some of us spent the night trying to find members for our little team because as much as Doc and I kick ass, we don’t have enough firepower between us to take down Bobo and his entire group. It just so happened that a lot of people who have abilities hang out in the same bar outside of town.”

“Did you find anyone at least?” Nicole asked curiously, her eyes glancing to Waverly whose eyebrows were creased in annoyance.

“Not a soul, no one wants to fight next to an Earp and no one wants to risk being outed to go against Bobo.”

“Well, I am,” Nicole responded instantaneously and without hesitation, “I wasn’t really expecting to come here tonight either but I realized that I’m either a part of this or I’m part of the problem so I’m in and I think you need to consider that Waverly needs to be as well.”

“I’m glad to hear that you’re in and you literally give us some firepower but we’re going to have to do this without Waverly,” Wynonna grabbed a donut from the box, taking a big bite before throwing it back roughly as she chewed, “I can’t risk her hurting herself or hurting anyone else.”

“If we don’t have her, it’s not going to matter because we’re going to be killed by Bobo or Black Badge, whoever gets to us first,” The redhead shook her head, heavy frustration set in her tone, “Bobo is scared of her so we need to use that. If Waverly thinks she can control her abilities, then you need to give her a chance to prove it.”

“I don’t need to do anything, red,” Wynonna chewed loudly and obnoxiously, sighing when her eyes landed on her sister, “Listen, you’re all I have left Waves. Besides Gus, you’re the only family I have and I don’t want to make another stupid decision and push you into harm’s way. I know how kick-ass you are and I know how helpful you would be but I worry too much to have you involved in all of this.”

“I’m already involved,” Waverly replied, pulling her chair out to sit down next to her sister, “Bobo has made sure of that and I can’t just sit on the sidelines. I can control myself, I may not be on the same level as you two ability wise but I do know that I’m going to be needed and I’m not going to let anyone down.”

“We’ll talk about this tomorrow, preferably in the afternoon once the headache wears off,” Wynonna paused at the end of her sentence, accepting that she may have no choice but to allow her baby sister to help, “You’re a secret weapon and I want to keep you a secret if I can because once it’s exposed that we’re powered to everyone else, things aren’t ever going to be the same for you. There’s always been rumors about me and I know the Earp Curse is a thing for both of us but you’re popular, you’re head cheerleader and you have a life that isn’t defined by what you can do.”

“But that’s just a complete lie, I am defined by what I can do because Black Badge make sure to remind me of that constantly,” Waverly’s voice was low and raw, reaching out to rest her hand over her sisters, “I can’t escape this and I don’t want to. This is who I am, anything else is what I pretend to be and I don’t want to run from that, I don’t want to hide from it.”

“We’ll talk tomorrow after school, Nicole can come too and we can figure this mess out,” Wynonna said after a pause, the heavy realization of what Waverly had said hitting her, “When we live like that, we pay a price.”

“I’m already paying one and other people have paid for me,” Waverly mumbled simply, “Including you.”

Wynonna stood from the table, grabbing 2 donuts in one hand and the bottle of whiskey in the other before placing a brief kiss on Waverly’s head and making her way upstairs. Nicole watched Waverly carefully, watching the brunette’s shoulders slump as a door closed upstairs; the youngest Earp exhaling deeply. The redhead placed a gentle hand on Waverly’s shoulder, feeling the warmth of a hand on her own almost immediately when the brunette tilted her head to lock eyes.

“That went about as well as I thought it would.” Waverly admitted quietly, giving Nicole’s hand a squeeze, “I don’t suppose I can give you a donut to stay?”

“I want to stay Waverly but I shouldn’t,” Nicole felt as if she was being torn apart by the look in the younger woman’s eyes. Her chest was gripped tightly, watching the Waverly chew on her bottom lip innocently which only made Nicole’s mind shift to a scenario where she stayed, “After what just happened in your room, I think tonight might not be the smartest of choices. We need clear heads and we don’t have that right now.”

“You’re right, I’d like to say I’d have enough self-control but you’re right,” The corners of Waverly’s mouth tugging into a smile, “The offer still stands for a donut though.”  
“I might pass, they don’t look exactly fresh,” Nicole responded with a chuckle, Waverly standing from the table but keeping a grip on her hand as they dropped down between them; her thumb brushing against the back of the redhead’s hand, “You don’t have to walk me out, you left your coat upstairs and it’s freezing outside.”

“I did just recklessly abandon it on the floor,” Waverly joked, her voice dropping to just above a whisper and the husk returning thickly, “I’m glad you came over and I’m glad we finally got to really talk about everything.”

“Me too, I think we were way past due,” Nicole admitted with a quick nod, bringing Waverly’s hand to her lips and placing a soft kiss on the skin of the back of her hand, “I really want a clean slate and I want this chance to see how this…us works.”

“Hopefully we get the chance,” Waverly responded quietly, exhaling shakily at Nicole’s lips on her skin, “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Can I pick you up for school?” Nicole asked swiftly, “I’m sure Wynonna won’t be mad about having the car now that Doc doesn’t have one. Plus I can come by in the afternoon and we can talk about what the plan is for Bobo and how this is all going to happen.”

“I’d like that. What I wouldn’t give for us to just be normal and the only thing we had to worry about was what we were going to wear on our first date,” Waverly said with a sad smile, the burden of her abilities weighing heavily on her shoulders, “I guess we will just have to skip that part until after the pep rally.”

“What about tomorrow night?” Nicole asked with a shrug, “After we’re done here, would you like to go get dinner or something?”

“You know what I would like to do?” Waverly suggested hopefully, “I just want to be home and I want you next to me. Maybe we could just watch a movie or something, I don’t care what; I just want you to stay for a while.”

“Deal.” The redhead spoke without hesitation before taking a step into the brunette and capturing Waverly’s lips in her own. This kiss was soft and tender in comparison to the desperation and need that filled their first kiss. Waverly’s hand left Nicole’s only to tangle it in the back of the redhead’s hair again; a content sigh leaving her mouth before they slowly parted.

Nicole couldn’t explain how good it felt to finally be that close to Waverly, like it was always meant to be and if they could get through the obstacle that was Bobo; they would have a long future together. The brunette felt like a real home to Nicole, someone she could base herself around and truly connect with. Waverly’s eyes fluttered open, the genuineness shining through like a beacon of hope that showed Nicole she made the right choice by giving the youngest Earp a chance to correct her mistakes. She pressed a lingering kiss to Waverly’s forehead before reluctantly taking a step backwards and relinquishing any grip she had on the smaller woman.

“I’ll see you in the morning, Waves.” Nicole rasped quietly, taking steps towards the door knowing that if she didn’t leave now; she wouldn’t be able to leave at all.

“Drive safely.” Was all she heard from Waverly as she exited the homestead, moving through the deep chill towards her car and shutting the door loudly behind her.

The car took a few moments to warm up which gave her the opportunity to really comprehend what had happened inside. She and Waverly had kissed, all the passing glances; lingering moments and careful touches had been a lead up for one of the most fulfilling moments in Nicole’s life. She couldn’t understand it yet and she couldn’t explain it if she tried. The only thing should could pin it down to was fate.

It seemed like fate liked to play games with Nicole but she couldn’t deny that she had never felt anything as significant as the connection she shared with the youngest Earp sister. There was something about Waverly that made her feel secure and content, something made her feel accepted and genuinely happy. It was an instantaneous reaction, like it was always set in place for her to discover at that time in her life and she hoped she would have longer than a few days to experience it.

Her drive home was filled with thoughts of Waverly, a stir in her stomach from the moment she saw the brunette’s darkened eyes at their close proximity abruptly fell away as her car rolled to a stop outside of her cabin. Nicole paused, turning her headlights off immediately as her mouth dried and a large lump formed in her throat. Her front door was wide open and the lights were on but she knew that everything was locked up when she left for school that morning. She steeled herself, knowing that if someone had been in there; it was highly probable that they were still there. She didn’t think it was a break in, it was almost impossible to find the hidden cabin unless you knew what you were looking for and it was so out of the way that it made the very little that Nicole owned not worth the trouble.

She exhaled sharply whilst she worked up the courage to move inside, not realizing that her foot was bouncing up and down rapidly before she pressed her palm down to her knee forcefully to stop it. It was moments like that when she wished she had a phone but she knew whatever or whoever was inside of her cabin was something she would need to deal with on her own.

Nicole emerged from her car, not willing to shift her gaze away from her wide-open front door but shaking the tingling out of her palm to let the flame engulf her hand. It burned brightly through the darkness; flickers of light dancing around her and the fire only grew as her heartbeat began to race. She felt sick to her stomach, fearful of what she would find and angry that someone had taken it upon themselves to waltz into her home no matter what they wanted.

The cold, damp ground crunched under her shoes; her breath visible through the light shining out of her cabin when she paused just outside the door. Nicole exhaled quickly once more before walking with a purpose inside her own home, everything in her body freezing as she saw who was sitting on her small couch with a grin covering his wicked face. His coat was loosely draped over his shoulders, flipping a coin between his fingers and tapping his foot impatiently on the wooden floor. Bobo Del Rey was sitting in front of her, watching Nicole’s startled reaction with an excited glint in his eye. She raised her hand towards him, the dread of finding him inside of her cabin causing her to move into autopilot, which was only greeted with hostility. Bobo only did something as small as a lift of his finger and a knife had surged from the sink in her tiny kitchen until it was directly pointed at her neck.

“Now, now miss Haught,” Bobo warned whimsically, “Is that any way to treat a house guest? I came to talk.”

“It doesn’t look like it,” Nicole muttered, glancing down to the knife that was only hairs away from making contact with her neck, “You tried to kill me when you pushed those bullets towards me a few days ago. You saw what I can do, I could do the same to the knife.”

“You’d be dead before you tell your brain to move your arm,” Bobo responded lazily as he watched the redhead carefully, “And I had a feeling you could do that but I know you didn’t. I wanted you to prove to me that you’re worthy but I also wanted you to prove it to yourself, see what else you’re capable of doing without you knowing yet.”

“You didn’t do anything to prove my powers, you were trying to kill me.”

“Maybe I was but can you blame me?” Bobo responded with a shrug, tossing the coin into the air, “I can’t be the first person who has tried to kill you; you handled yourself too well for that to be true.”

“What are you doing here?” Nicole snapped angrily, feeling the knife press up against her skin, “Why are you here?”

“Because I told you, I only want to talk to you,” Bobo growled lowly, pulling his coat tightly as he stood from the small couch, “I’ve wanted to talk to you since you showed me what you could do outside Shorty’s diner.”

Nicole didn’t know what to do. She didn’t want to hear a word Bobo Del Rey spoke but with a knife pressed up against her neck and her only method of escape being a metal death trap; she wasn’t sure she had much of a choice.

“Enlighten me.”

“You’re special, Nicole but you don’t see it because no one ever told you that you were,” Bobo’s voice grew smoother as she spoke, “Your parents chased you out of your own home and you’ve been hiding yourself ever since they told you that you were wrong. They were so constricting.” He pulled tightly on his coat once more as he finished his sentence, paying special attention to his neck as he illustrated his words.

“How do you know about my parents?” Nicole growled lowly, the situation slowly beginning to turn from bad to worse very quickly.

“I know a lot about you, Nicole,” He twirled the coin in his hand, watching Nicole as a predator would watch his prey before he chose to strike and she didn’t have a choice but to stay still, “But I also know that you know you don’t deserve any of what has been thrust upon you. I know that you hate the injustice that is plaguing the world right now and I know that your sweetheart Waverly betrayed you the moment she saw you were just like us.”

Nicole’s blood grew cold. She tried to keep her surprise to herself but her rapid blinking gave her newfound shock away. Bobo chuckled with a nod as he moved towards the window of the cabin slowly.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Nicole spoke through gritted teeth, looking around her small space to see if there was anything she could distract him with momentarily to give herself a chance to fight.

“Don’t lie to me, I don’t like when people lie to me,” He grunted, his lip curling back slowly, “I have eyes in places you wouldn’t know, I have people with connections to black badge so you lying to me is counter productive. We’re on the same side, Nicole, we want the same thing.”

“Which is what?” She asked with more curiousness in her tone than she wanted to display.

“We just want to be free and we want our powered brothers and sisters to be free as well, not locked up for crimes they didn’t commit,” Bobo urged carefully, folding his arms over his chest as the coin in his hand fell to the floor, “You’ve made some wrong choices since you’ve come here but you can fix that right now. You can’t trust the Earps because they’ve turned you in once and they’ll do it again if it comes down to either of them or you. They don’t care about anyone but themselves and you’re not a part of that family.”

“I do trust them.”

“Then you’re not as smart as you seem,” Bobo snapped quickly, taking a moment to regain his composure and looking up at the redhead with a smirk, “But it would be different if you were with me. I’d protect you, no matter what and I certainly wouldn’t allow black badge to set foot here like Wynonna and Waverly did.”

“You want me to join your group of insanity?” Nicole raised her eyebrows, scoffing at Bobo’s offer in shock, “You think after what I’ve seen and what I’ve heard, I would do something like that?”

“What’s happening to our brothers and sisters is what should be considered the crime but instead we are being picked off one by one until those of us that are left are pushed into hiding for being born with abilities,” Bobo’s voice was passionate as he spoke, Nicole hating how a small part of her wanted to hear how he would continue his sentence, “We’re under the thumbs of humans and that’s how they like it.”

“And your solution is to kill hundreds of innocent kids?” Nicole questioned with raised eyebrows.

“Blood has to be spilled for mankind to fall to their feet in front of us like we deserve,” Bobo shook his head, aggression in his tone, “And these kids are not so innocent, they stand by and do nothing whilst we’re hunted in numbers, taken into custody where we become science projects and test dummy’s depending on what the so called doctors are trying to do next. Do you know what they do to you once you’re captured?”

“No one knows. No one has ever come back from that.”

“That’s where you’re wrong young lady,” He pulled at his sleeve roughly, revealing some kind of barcode tattooed on the underside of his wrist, “Did your Earps tell you that I’ve been inside before some unfortunate soul made the mistake of leaving a metal fork in my dinner tray? That I am the only gifted person who has escaped from the hell they put us through?”

“How have the cops not come after you more?” Nicole raised her eyebrows skeptically but the look on her face giving her curiousness away.

“They’ve tried everything and they continue to try everything but I’m practically untouchable right now with the people I have around me and I could help you achieve that too. If you were with me, you wouldn’t need to worry about anything. You would never need to look over your shoulder again, you’d never wonder where the next roof over your head would be and you could finally stop running,” Bobo pitched seriously, bringing his hand to stroke his beard quickly, his eyes moving erratically around the room, “Unless you want to get captured and in that case when you get captured, you get taken to facilities all across the country and you rot away until the scientists have a use for your body to study or until they try to force a genetic fix into you to either kill you or stop what they call your mutation from firing.”

“They’re…” Nicole couldn’t finish her words, thinking of those whom she had lost along the way to capture.

“They’re picking us off and making us suffer because they’re not scared of us like they should be,” Bobo said angrily as he pulled his arm from view, “We’re not the ones in charge like we should be. You say that these kids at your school are innocent, I say there are no innocent humans because they are just allowing this to happen; they’re turning their heads so they don’t have to look.”

“And your counter is to slaughter.”

“My counter is to send a message and people have to die for that to happen,” Bobo countered quickly, the smirk growing on his face again, “You’re either with us or you are against us and if you are against us then you’re going to enter a war you can’t win. I could have killed you tonight but I see your value so I want to give you a chance. I want you to think about everything I have said, I want you to think about how greatness is sitting in the reach of your fingertips. If we make our move, we protect our future but if we continue to run or hide; we’ll be extinguished faster than you can blink.”

“You want me to think about this?” Nicole sneered, raising her eyebrows but swallowing thickly as the knife pushed against her skin.

“You would be wise to do just that,” Bobo nodded, taking steps towards the redhead until he was standing face to face, “This is the only way forward, we have to protect ourselves and I think you understand that. Black Badge are never going to yield because they are not afraid of us and if they say they will then they’re lying. You may think I’m crazy but I can see the truth and I speak it just as much. I’m going to leave you alone now, thank you for the hospitality but I’m going to keep that knife there until I leave so you don’t do anything you’ll regret. I’ll see you soon and when I do I will give you a choice, I want an answer then and there.”

With those last words, Bobo strode past Nicole; bumping her shoulder slightly with a dark chuckle before disappearing. Her fists clenched tightly, working internally to keep calm as her heart pounded inside of her chest. The knife dropped after what felt like hours, in reality they were only seconds but they dragged too long with the thoughts running through Nicole’s mind.

She hated to admit that Bobo wasn’t wrong with everything he said, they didn’t deserve to live like they did and they didn’t deserve to be hunted but she also knew his solution was not the answer. She rushed towards her front door, her eyes ablaze almost as much as her hands as she stood watching for any movement outside but all she could see was stillness.

Bobo had slipped in and out easier than Nicole liked; realizing for the first time just how powerful and dangerous he was. She was going to have to face him sometime and if he was convinced they would go to war if they were on opposite sides then that’s exactly what Nicole would give to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know your thoughts!  
> I'll update soon!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the little delay on this one! I've been keeping myself on task by not posting until I'm at least 2 chapters ahead of myself so my momentum doesn't stop. Hope you all enjoy this one :)

Nicole woke up the next morning with a pounding headache as her alarm clock sounded harshly in her ears. She squeezed her eyes shut, sitting up in her small bed trying to remember what had actually happened last night between kissing Waverly and coming home to find Bobo Del Rey waiting for her. She groaned, only having fallen asleep a few hours ago after Bobo left, cycling between being afraid in her own cabin to wondering what Bobo’s real plan had been when he came to talk to Nicole.

He could have killed her if he wanted to, she would have had the slightest chances of fighting back but he could do more to her in a shorter amount of time than she could manage. She was beginning to see why he was so dangerous, he had abilities that were powerful but more importantly; he believed in his convictions no matter how twisted they could be which made him deadlier.

She knew she was going to have to tell Waverly what happened, they promised no more secrets and it was something she was going to stick to but the redhead wasn’t sure she wanted to see how the Earp sisters reacted. Her eyes went wide as she realized she had told Waverly she would be at her house that morning to pick her up before school and knowing that it didn’t give her a lot of time to get ready.

Shooting out of bed, she rushed to her shower, opting for cool water to push away her tiredness but all it did was make her cold. Nicole looked at herself in the mirror; her eyes were hooded like they had been for the past few days and the dark circles under her eyes only grew. She threw on a pair of dark jeans, a white and black striped shirt with her dark green coat and her baseball cap to try and hide her face as well as she could before jumping in her car and heading to the homestead.

Her fingers tapped nervously against the steering wheel as she drove, running even later due to her car having some trouble starting in the cold; feeling as if the world was suddenly against her going to see Waverly that morning. The music began blending in with her thoughts as she pulled up to the homestead, the words in her head only screaming at her louder as her car rolled to a stop.

Nicole wasted no time getting out of the car, ensuring her boots kept her feet safely on the floor in the icy conditions before arriving at the front door. She raised her hand to knock only for the door to swing open where she found Wynonna standing in front of her with an awkward smile on her face.

“Nicole, hi.” Wynonna said with the awkward smile only growing.

“Uh hey, Wynonna,” Nicole furrowed her brows with a shake of her head, “Is everything okay? I’m just here to pick up Waverly for school.”

“Yes, I know,” She nodded quickly, pulling the door closed behind her so she was standing outside with the redhead, “And that was super thoughtful of you so we can have a car seeing as Doc’s went up in flames. You’re a class act, Haught.”

 “Thanks,” Nicole’s suspicions only grew as an awkward silence settled over the two, “Should we go inside? It’s freezing out here.”

“It is freezing but I need to talk to you,” Wynonna responded quickly, “You look really run down.”

“Thanks.”

“I just mean that you look tired and no doubt that has something to do with the Earp curse that’s now made it’s way to you,” Wynonna said quickly, joking lightly before any animation fell off her face, “Look, I just wanted to apologize to you, for everything. Whatever happened in the past few weeks has been all my fault. Waverly didn’t want to do anything but have you left alone and left out of all of this so if you’re mad over any of that; please make sure you’re mad at me instead.”

“Noted, thanks.” Nicole offered with confusion.

“I just can see how much Waverly cares about you and I don’t want to ruin everything good in her life because she deserves it and she deserves someone like you,” She made a face that broadcasted the inner turmoil that was brewing in her mind, “I don’t want to think about my sisters love life because, gross but she deserves to be happy and even though we are up to our knees in all kinds of sewage, you still manage to pull an actual, genuine smile out of her and that counts for a lot with me.”

“Okay, well I’m glad you think that,” Nicole said as she felt the corners of her lips pulling in a smile, “I’m sorry you and I got off on the wrong foot.”

“You and I want the same things and it took me a lot longer than it should have to realize that so I am sorry for being an ass,” Wynonna huffed, folding her arms over her chest tightly, “But Waves is right when she said we’re going to need her help and I’m glad you’re onboard the train to Pep Rally City but if we are going to have a shot at stopping someone like Bobo then we need someone like my sister in our corner. She’s powerful, too powerful but she’s also the best person I know; annoyingly great so if we’re going to combat that evil we’re going to need a whole lot of good.”

“I told Waverly last night that we’re on a clean slate so you don’t need to apologize anymore but thank you,” Nicole nodded quickly, looking over Wynonna’s shoulder; expecting Waverly to open the door and interrupt but it never came, “Waverly and I should probably go…”

“I’ve been putting this off because I have no idea how to ask someone this but you’re the best person I know at being on the run, you’re actually the only person I know who has been on the run. I mean you look like you’re on the lamb right now.”

“I just didn’t get much sleep.” Nicole confessed slowly, tugging her hat down further to try and hide her tired eyes.

“I need you to promise me something and I need you to also promise that you’re not going to tell Waverly about this,” Wynonna said seriously, taking a few steps closer to Nicole, “Will you promise me that you’re not going to tell her what I’m about to ask you?”

“It depends what you ask,” Nicole’s patience felt as if it were thinning under Wynonna’s vagueness, “Wynonna, just tell me.”

“If things go badly at the pep rally, if Bobo has won or Black Badge has come after us…I need you to take Waverly away from here, as far from Purgatory as you can go,” Wynonna’s stare locked onto Nicole, making the redhead feel small under the intensity, “She won’t hurt you and she might not be happy with you for a while but I need you to tell me you’ll take her and keep her safe.”

“You want me to take Waverly away from here?”

“As far away from Purgatory as you can manage,” Wynonna nodded quickly, “Waverly is special and if anyone is going to stop this whole thing, it’s going to be her but I can’t bear to think about her being locked up or worse. I need you to promise me that if things go south, you’ll take her away from here.”

“How am I going to be able to take her?” The redhead asked curiously, “I mean, she could stop me in a heartbeat.”

“She’s not going to do anything to you,” Wynonna responded honestly, an awkward pause between them, “She’s not going to use her abilities against you but I need you to give me your word you’ll do this for me. I know you and I got off on the wrong foot and I am really sorry for that but I was trying to protect my sister like I am trying to again right now. You and I both want her to be safe and if something goes wrong, you’re our best shot at that.”

“I might not be able to make a difference,” Nicole countered with furrowed brows, “Do you know something I don’t?”

“No, no, I just…I just know how these situations can change in a blink of an eye and I need someone we both can trust,” Wynonna’s tone increasing in concern before a quiet sigh left her mouth, “You and Waverly have something, whatever it is, I have no idea but I would have to be blind to miss it. She will go with you if she has to, I know she won’t want to but she’ll go and I need a plan B if something goes wrong.”

“I’ll do what I can.” Nicole conceded quietly, glancing over Wynonna’s shoulder she heard the door handle turn quickly.

“Are you going to let Nicole in or are you just going to hold her outside?” Waverly asked curiously, Wynonna turning to her sister with a forced smile, “Are you both okay?”

“We’re fine, we’re just talking about tonight,” Wynonna said as convincingly as she could manage before turning back to Nicole, “So yeah, you just bring Waverly home tonight and we’ll start planning this whole operation shut down crazy.”

“Sounds…good.” Nicole’s voice was as awkward as Wynonna’s, raising her eyebrow as she watched the elder Earp sister.

Wynonna opened her mouth to speak again but nothing came out, turning around to her sister before offering another forced smile and walking away without saying another word. Waverly took a step towards Nicole, eyeing her curiously but a small, excited smile pulling at her mouth.

“What was that about?” The brunette questioned slowly.

“Uh, about tonight. I’ll bring you home straight from school and we’re having that meeting now that I’m on board,” Nicole tried to play along but she was soon distracted by the quickness of her heartbeat when Waverly reached out to touch her fingertips to the redhead’s forearm, “Hi.”

“I know I just saw you last night and I know we’re in an uphill battle here but you make things a little better when I get to see you,” Waverly spoke sweetly, looking so small in front of Nicole wearing high wasted denim jeans and Purgatory High sweatshirt that she pulled off better than it should have been possible. She felt every negative thought fall from her shoulders, only being able to concentrate on Waverly, “Did you get much sleep?”

“No,” Nicole spoke honestly after realizing she had paused for a second too long, her heart in her stomach, “I’m trying to hide how tired I look.”

“You still look beautiful.” Waverly muttered shyly with a smile, her cheeks reddening quickly at her admission.

“Well you’re the one making that sweatshirt look impossibly cute,” Nicole blurted with a nod, reaching up to tug the brim of her cap up slightly so Waverly could see her eyes better, “I don’t know how you do it, Waves.”

“I’m actually wearing this because I couldn’t have been bothered making any effort today,” Waverly’s eyes glancing to Nicole’s lips quickly, silence hanging over them as they both began to feel charged once more, “I didn’t sleep that well either last night, I couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss and how much I wanted to do it again as soon as I saw you.”

Nicole stepped into Waverly slowly, reaching out to tilt her chin up slightly as she pressed her cool lips against the brunette’s in a tender kiss. She heard Waverly sigh quietly, savoring the moment between them as she felt Waverly’s hands grasp her waist tightly before she pulled away with an instant feeling of regret when she did.

“I’d stand out here and to that but it’s probably warmer in the car so although it would be worth it, we’re probably going to be late if we keep doing this,” Nicole mutter with her voice just above a whisper, taking a step backwards with hesitation, “Hopefully this day goes faster than I think it’s going to.”

“You’re telling me, I have to wait a whole day to be back here with you?” Waverly asked with a wide smile, “Today is going to suck.”

“Yeah.” Was all Nicole could offer as she broke through the Waverly filled haze; the thoughts of Bobo Del Rey flooding her brain until she struggled to think about anything else.

The redhead took another step backwards so Waverly could walk passed her, rubbing her eyes quickly before following the brunette and opening the door for the smaller girl once they did reach her car. She received a peck on the lips for her act of chivalry before she started the car and beginning their journey to school.

Music was playing softly, Waverly’s hands rested politely in her lap as the two took the relatively short drive in mostly silence. The brunette’s words echoed through Nicole’s head about being honest with each other and knowing that she needed to tell Waverly what had happened when she arrived home last night but not being able to figure out how.

As they pulled up in the parking lot, another situation loomed over her head as she realized she and Waverly were going to have to make a very quick decision on how they acted around each other at school. As if Waverly had the ability to read her mind, she leaned over and placed a kiss on Nicole’s cheek before leaning back in her seat.

“I guess we need to talk about what we’re going to do while we’re at school?” Waverly asked as she ran a hand through her hair, “I mean, I don’t care what people say about me and I am proud to be seen with you but I want to know what you think we should do.”

“As much as I want to walk into school holding your hand, I think until the pep rally; we just need to keep doing what we were doing before yesterday.”

“What, taking turns at avoiding the other?” Waverly raised both of her eyebrows.

“No, just acting like acquaintances,” Nicole replied with a shake of her head, seeing the wheels turning in Waverly’s eyes, “Because a lot is going to happen at the pep rally and I already have a lot of crap talked about me so we might as well leave you as just the popular girl for now.”

“Who is an Earp and has more crap talked about her than anyone,” Waverly replied with a shrug, sighing heavily, “But I agree, I think you and I need to lay low just until then. I’ll just have to kiss you a hell of a lot before we get out of this car.”

“I have no complaints about that.” Nicole said weakly with a nod, “What do you have first period?”

“I’ve got gym so I can miss whatever I need to miss,” Waverly responded carefully, watching as Nicole absently placed her hand on the brunette’s knee, “Is everything okay?”

“I don’t know,” Nicole said honestly, swallowing thickly as she felt the haze of the night before move to the forefront of her mind once more, “I have to tell you something and I don’t know if me telling you this puts you in more danger but I don’t want to keep this from you.”

“Baby, whatever it is; you can tell me.” Waverly’s voice gentle and warm, placing her hand atop of Nicole’s, “I know that I wasn’t totally honest before but I promise you can trust me.”

“When I came home last night, my door was open and I found Bobo sitting inside.” Nicole confessed, studying Waverly’s face as her eyebrows raised, her hand shifting away from the redhead’s.

“What was Bobo doing there?” Waverly questioned, shock almost instantly turning to anger, “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?” I swear to god, if he tried anything I will kill him myself.”

“He wanted to talk to me, he wanted me to join his group,” The redhead admitted reluctantly, “He had a knife up to my neck so I wouldn’t do anything but he didn’t actually do anything to hurt me.”

“Well what did he want to talk to you about?” Waverly asked, trying to push for information.

“The pep rally amongst other things,” Nicole thought carefully before she spoke, each word that Bobo said running through her mind, “He told me that I can’t trust you, that you betrayed me once and you’ll do it again. That as soon as things get tough, you’ll both turn on me to save each other; which I know he was saying to me just to get into my head but I need to know something and I need you to promise you’re going to tell me the truth.”

“Whatever you ask.” Waverly confirmed with a nod. 

 “Did you know that Bobo was captured? Did he tell you what they’re doing to people like us?”

“Yes,” Waverly said after a quiet sigh, bringing her hand to rub her eyes roughly, “He told us what they’re doing to us and it’s awful, it’s more than awful.”

“But you were still going to turn me in?” Nicole questioned with a hint of pain in her voice, fearing where the conversation may lead.

“I was never going to turn you in, Nicole,” Waverly’s voice even and calm as she spoke, “That was Wynonna’s plan but it was never mine. What people are going through right now is horrible but Bobo seems to think what he is planning in going to somehow help that when any sane person can see that it’s just going to make it worse.”

“You don’t need to tell me that, I already agreed and after talking to Bobo and seeing his conviction just made me realize just how much we need to put a stop to him,” She glanced out the window, watching a the last few students make their way through the parking lot, “I know that I can trust you but what’s our plan for black badge after this?”

“I wish I could tell you that we have a plan but we don’t,” Waverly explained honestly, “We’re kind of one problem at a time people and Black Badge is a whole different issue.”

“But you know what they’re doing to people like us, you know that they’re turning us into human experiments. Everyone I have ever met who was captured is probably dead and Bobo might be going about it the wrong way but honestly, at least he’s trying to do something,” Nicole responded with a sense of strength in her tone, “What they’re doing is wrong and I know I don’t need to tell you that but maybe they’re not scared of us.”

“Or maybe they don’t respect us enough,” Waverly replied in kind, “I know this isn’t ideal and I know that Bobo can be good at spinning words. I know that there’s a lot we can’t do right now but we’re the only ones who can stop Bobo right now. Black Badge won’t do it so if maybe we can earn their respect, maybe we can learn the worlds respect enough for people to think differently about someone they know that’s powered.”

“What if we can’t? What if it just makes people more scared of us?”

“Then at least we saved a gym full of innocent people,” Waverly responded with a sigh, “We’ve got to pick our battles Nicole and you know that. That’s the reason why you’ve survived so long.”

“You’re right,” Nicole muttered, nodding slowly as Waverly’s words sunk in, “How are we going to stop someone who doesn’t think he can be stopped?”

“We prove him wrong,” Waverly shrugged as if it was so simply, confidence growing in her voice, “We’re going to stop him, whatever it takes.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that Bobo had been captured before?”

“Because I didn’t think that part really mattered, honestly he acted the way he does before he was captured,” Waverly continued slowly, “Listen, he has a way of getting into your head; he’s extremely good that way even if he is insane. He will say whatever he can to wedge self doubt wherever he can and he has no problem doing it; he’s done that to us all our lives but the more he tries the more you’re getting to him.”

“You’ve been dealing with that for so long,” Nicole said sympathetically, turning in her seat to face the brunette and brushing her check lightly with her thumb as her hand rested at the back of Waverly’s neck, “I trust you and Wynonna and I trust whatever plan we’re going to make.”

“That’s nothing in comparison to what you’ve been dealing with.” Waverly toyed with her fingers in her lap but her eyes stayed locked on Nicole’s, “I’m glad you’re here now.”

“Me too, Waves.” Nicole’s tone as heavy as her thoughts as they raced, her eyes searching Waverly’s expression, “I guess we should go inside.”

“That’s all you wanted to talk about?”

It wasn’t. Nicole wanted to talk about how Wynonna asked her to take Waverly as far away from Purgatory as she could if things didn’t go well. She wanted to tell Waverly the truth but she knew the brief conversation that she had with Wynonna this morning was best kept to herself right now. As much as it pained her and as guilty as she felt, she had to put Waverly’s safety first and she could tell her later.

“That’s it,” She swallowed her guilt momentarily, leaning over to place a gentle kiss on Waverly’s lips before sitting back in her chair, “You want to go inside first?”

“We can walk in at the same time,” Waverly rolled her eyes, “And I’m getting you a phone.”

“No, that’s a bad idea,” Nicole spoke with wide eyes, “Waves, that’s one of the easiest ways to be tracked, I’m not getting a phone.”

“What happens if something happens like last night and you need to call someone?”

“I’ll deal with it myself without needing a phone,” Nicole responded instantly, pausing as she saw a smirk on Waverly’s face, “I’m not taking a phone.”

“We’ll talk about that later.” Waverly winked playfully but the smile on her face never reaching her eyes.

There was too much happening; there were too many lives at stake for either of them to be thinking about much more than what was in front of them.

The school day was antagonizing, so slow that it was like time itself was conspiring against them. Nicole was anxious all day, keeping an eye on Waverly when she was in sight and worrying about her when she wasn’t even though she knew the younger girl was more powerful than herself.

As the last bell cut through Nicole’s thoughts, she stood from her desk and rushed outside towards the parking lot. She was taking Waverly home but there was no way that they were going to get out of there unseen so she ran through all of the possible situations as to why Nicole would be taking her home.

To her surprise, she found Waverly standing against her car with her arms folded and her eyes fixed on the ground. She arrived in front of the brunette, visually startling her on approach before a small smile appeared on Waverly’s face.

“That good of a day for you too, huh?” Nicole questioned sympathetically.

“Yep, I’d say I’m glad it’s over but I’m not to sure the next part is going to be any better.” They were both exhausted, you could see in their faces and you could hear it in their voices but they both knew they were going to have to endure more that evening.

The drive back to the Earp homestead was almost silent, Nicole’s hand resting on Waverly’s thigh the whole way with the brunette’s fingers linked with her own. They moved into the kitchen once they arrived, Waverly making sure to stand as close to Nicole as she possibly could; their hands still linked where they saw Doc, Wynonna and Dolls huddled around the table looking at a Purgatory High blueprint.

“Sorry, we started the party without you,” Wynonna said weakly, gesturing to the two empty chairs, “We can bring you up to speed pretty quickly because there aren’t a lot of exits out of that god damn gym.”

“I could have told you that.” Waverly responded with a nod, tugging Nicole towards the table as they both sat down.

“So what’s the plan so far?” Nicole asked as the nerves tingled through her body, things were becoming to feel even more real than she had expected.

“You two are going to the pep rally, Nicole you’re on the track and field team and Waves you’re obviously head cheerleader so you’ll be there anyway.” Wynonna began until Dolls cut her off as politely as he could.

“Which is good, that means we already have you two in there and you should be relatively close together,” Dolls said as he pointed to the gym blueprint, “My guess is that they’re going to come into the gym in true Bobo fashion, they’re going to want everyone’s attention and they’ll get it because they’re going to need a distraction to lock the doors. We don’t know what they’re planning yet but it’s safe to say that they’re going to want everyone trapped inside.”

“Which is the complete opposite to what we want,” Wynonna nodded, bouncing off Dolls as she looked between Nicole and Waverly, “Dolls and Doc are going to stay outside and I’m going to be inside watching the pep rally. I want Bobo to know that I’m there because I know he’s going to be looking for me.”

“So we’re going to let them come inside?” Waverly asked with confusion on her face, “They’re just going to stroll in?”

“Yes because we need to make Bobo think that he as control for as long as we can. He’s going to shut the doors, most likely from the outside so once this happens, we need to take out whoever is out there for him and unlock those doors but leave them closed. If we need to get out of this what we do then we have to let people see they’re in danger before they’re not,” Wynonna answered cautiously, “Which is a risk but we have to take it right now. We don’t have backup, we have just us and we need to make sure we keep Bobo where he wants to be at least until we can start getting people out of here.”

“He’s going to want attention and he’ll get it for a while until we bring out the big guns, or big gun specifically in Peacemaker and have Wynonna distract Bobo while we start getting some people out of the exits,” Dolls glanced to Wynonna who gave him a nod to continue, “Doc and I are going to concentrate on getting everyone out, you two are going to be tasked with handling anyone of Bobo’s group that tries to stop us that we can’t handle. There’s more of them than there are us so Waverly, we are going to really need you on this one.”

“I’m on it.” Waverly said with conviction, nodding to the group.

“We’re going to need you within reason, I don’t want you doing more than you need to.” Wynonna said wearily, running her hand through her hair and shaking her head.

“I’ll be fine.”

“From there, the plan is to make sure we have everyone out of there and once we do, Doc and I will come inside and we’re going to lock ourselves in until either one of two things happen,” Dolls confessed as he looked around the table, “We finish this thing and stop Bobo or he runs through us and we fail.”

“I don’t like the sound of option two,” Nicole said swallowing thickly, “I mean we don’t have any back ups?”

“I guess not,” Waverly mumbled with a shake of her head, “We’re just going to have to be ready.”

“We just have to trust each other and make sure we’re covering each other at all times,” Dolls spoke with a heavy tone, seriousness lining his voice, “We get one shot at this. Bobo is going to expect us to react somehow but I don’t think he’s going to expect us to lock ourselves in with them and I don’t think he’s going to prepare for us having a plan. We get everyone out, that’s the most important thing if we want this to achieve what we’re hoping for and then we do what we need to in order to survive.”

“Why are you helping so much?” Nicole asked curiously, leaning forward in her chair as her hands rested on the table, “I mean I know I don’t know a lot about you but you work for black badge. Why would you risk everything to help Wynonna and Waverly?”

“I was a police officer before all this started, my sister was powered but she was one of the kids like Waverly who were identified early when this all began,” Dolls confessed slowly, Wynonna bringing her hand to squeeze Doll’s shoulder supportively, “She was taken almost immediately when the order was given to start bringing in powered individuals and I couldn’t do anything to help. I joined black badge because I wanted to help from the inside and when I came here, I know exactly how to do that after meeting Wynonna and Waverly. I’m on your side, you don’t deserve to be treated like you are for something you can’t help and I know it’s too late for my sister but if I can do something to protect people who have become like my family than I’ll do so.”

“Aww, Dolls.” Waverly whispered with a small but sad smile.

“This plan is rough for now and it’s not totally worked out yet but once we nail down the details, we’ll take you through everything again,” Wynonna explained after a silence filled the room, “Waves, I’ve got to go to the diner quickly for Gus and we’re going to the gym to work out a few things but I want you to stay here for now. I’d feel better if you were just home with Nicole.”

“Honestly, after today, I’m not going to argue with that,” Waverly said shaking her head, her eyes honing in on Nicole, “Unless you have something you need to do?”

“No, we have plans,” Nicole reaffirmed quietly, “Right now, I don’t want to be anywhere else.”

“Well, glad to hear it because even if you did I’d need you to stay here.” Wynonna said dryly, Nicole knowing she was joking but not totally knowing how to take the raven haired Earp.

Nicole and Waverly watched them leave the homestead, the door locking quietly as they stood on the other side of the room and the TV turned itself on with a small click. The redhead eyed Waverly suspiciously and she shrugged casually with a small, wry smile.

“If I can’t use my abilities to do something like that then I might as well not use them at all,” Waverly spoke, replying only to the look she was given before reaching out to take Nicole’s hand and tugging her towards the couch, “Besides, I need as much practice as I can get. If only Bobo was as easy as locking a door or turning a TV on.”

“That would make things a lot easier,” Nicole agreed with a nod, allowing Waverly to pulled her down on the couch next to her and not giving even the slightest protest as her arm found her way around the brunette’s shoulders when the younger woman leaned back against her chest, “After today, this is definitely where I want to be.”

“I’m glad,” Waverly’s voice was barely a whisper, Nicole not even sure if she heard Waverly speak until she opened her mouth once more, “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.” Nicole said quickly and she meant it, finding out quickly that Waverly had a way to pierce her defenses without even realizing.

“When we are in that gym, when everything is happening…” Waverly’s voice trailing off momentarily as her eyes stayed focused on the screen in front of them, “Will you stay near me? When we’re against Bobo, will you stay near me in case something happens? I know it’s stupid but you’re the only person that seems to be able to keep me calm enough to focus.”

“Of course, Waves,” Nicole spoke without hesitation, “You’re not going through this alone, okay?”

“I just know that everything is going to happen really quickly and there’s going to be a lot going on around us but if I can hold my concentration on you, I think I’ll be okay,” Waverly continued to try and explain her thought process, “I’m glad you decided to stay in Purgatory, at least until I can convince you to stay for as long as we can.”

“You know you’re the only reason why I’ve stayed this long, right?” Nicole spoke honestly, unable to help herself as she pressed a kiss to Waverly’s hair, “I survived because I saw the first sign of danger and I left. I’ve thought about it, I can’t say that I haven’t but I don’t think I actually could. Moments like this…feeling the way I do about you is something that I never thought I would have because of everything that’s happening.”

“You’re too incredible not to,” Waverly pushed herself up from Nicole’s chest to look the redhead in the eyes, “I just hope we can get through all of this in one piece.”

“I trust you and if you say we can trust Dolls then I will,” Nicole nodded, leaning forward to capture Waverly’s lips in her own delicately. The younger woman sighed quietly once they pulled away from the slow kiss, their eyes both sparkling, “As weird as it is, I feel like I’ve almost found a home in Purgatory, which isn’t a small deal considering how I haven’t stayed in one place for such a long time.”

“Well you deserve to have a home and it’s awful that because of your own parents, you don’t feel like you can.”

“Do you think you’d be able to survive on the road?” The conversation with Wynonna that hadn’t left her thoughts at all that day rising to the forefront of her mind, “If you had to be, that is.”

“If I had to be, I guess I would just have to do what I needed to,” Waverly said with a small shrug, moving her head back to Nicole’s chest and settling against the redhead once more, “But Purgatory is my home, my family all lived here and Wynonna is here so I would fight to stay here and I will fight to stay here. Do you think after this, you’d be able to adjust to life in once place?”

“I want to stay here Waves, if we can stay here and that’s what you want then that’s what I want too,” Nicole wrapped her arms around the other woman, holding her as close as she possibly could in that moment, “I’ve never been able to stay in one place before so it would be strange but I’ve also never met someone who has meant so much to me before so quickly so I’m willing to go wherever you want and do whatever you do for as long as you’ll have me.”   

“Then you should probably just get ready to stay with me for a while then,” Waverly’s voice gentle but wavering slightly with rawness settling into the back of her throat, “You must have met people when you were moving through places though.”

“Not really,” She answered without any hesitation, a sigh leaving her mouth after a pause between them, “I did meet people along the way, a lot of them I hardly knew before they were taken away. I’ve had a lot of close calls, I’ve seen a lot more people go down when I thought it should have been me being captured but I’ve been really lucky.”

“That must have been really difficult.”

“It was. I mean on one hand, I was happy to have survived but on the other hand, it was awful seeing people who have helped you be taken away and knowing if you tried to help them you would just end up right beside them,” Nicole confessed with a nod, “It’s awful, and it’s selfish but it’s how I survived the raids and the ambushes, it’s how I’ve survived all the chases I’ve had to evade. Keeping people at arms length is how I have kept myself safe for so long but I guess I’m starting to realize that the world is getting smaller and it might be better to consider safety in numbers.”

“I’ve always kept people at arms length,” Waverly said with a nod, her hand searching for Nicole’s until their fingers were intertwined, “People just see what they want to see, what I allow them to see and that’s it. I keep people at arms length for their own safety.”

“How did you find out you could get passed that powered who works for Black Badge?”

“I thought if I am powerful enough to move someone where I want them to be or to make windows explode then maybe if I work hard enough, I could get passed him. It started out with small things, I started placing things in my mind that I wanted him to see and taking little things out that I wanted him to miss,” Waverly’s voice firmed in confidence, squeezing Nicole’s hand lightly, “I knew sooner or later I would going to need it. After they took Beth and Mercedes away, I never wanted to feel like that again and once I found out you were powered; I started getting ready to do what I needed to keep you safe. It hurts, I can only do it when I feel strong and it makes me feel really sick but I wasn’t going to let them take you and I’m not going to let them take you now, it’s not an option.”

“Waves if it’s going to happen and you can’t do anything to stop it or if you’re going to put yourself in too much danger then you just have to let it happen,” Nicole urged seriously, placing another kiss on Waverly’s head, “I don’t want you putting yourself in danger for me.”

“I know you’d do it for me, you already have.”

“And so have you.” Nicole countered firmly with a nod.

Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of a vehicle stopping outside with haste, the door slamming as the two girls stood from the couch side by side, ready to face whatever was happening in front of them.

The door burst open and Wynonna stood in front of them but Nicole felt fear ripple through her body immediately after seeing the Earp sister’s face. Horror and concern etched in her features, her eyes wide and her face pale.

“Bobo attacked the Sherriff’s department,” Wynonna spoke quickly with a panicked tone, “It’s a mess and he killed a bunch of officers but he took Nedley and no one knows where he went.”

“What?” Waverly asked with wide eyes, her hand reaching out to grasp Nicole’s, “He just attacked the Sherriff’s department and took the Sherriff? Just like that?”

“We have to find Nedley before this gets even uglier than it already is and they send every Black Badge agent out here,” Wynonna rushed her speech, the seriousness of the situation sitting heavily on their shoulders even though they weren’t responsible, “I don’t want to ask this of you but I need you both to help us look for Nedley and think of where he might have gone.”

“We’ll go right now,” Nicole found herself lost in her thoughts, knowing that Bobo told her the night before that she would see him soon with a choice so she wondered whether this might have been it, “We’ll find Nedley.”

“We better or we’re not even going to get a chance to go to the pep rally,” Wynonna gave the pair a worried glance before rushing into the kitchen, grabbing a handful of supplies, “If you see or hear anything, call me. I don’t want you two going into anything alone.”

“Let us know if you find anything.” Waverly echoed with a nod as she watched her sister rush outside the house as quickly as she had appeared.

The youngest Earp turned to Nicole with wide eyes, the redhead looking at her feet with her jaw clenched, thinking of what had happened just that night before.

“Any ideas on where he would be?” Nicole asked shakily, “He told me I would have a choice when I saw him next, I think he’s doing this because of me.”

“No, Nicole. He’s doing this because he is insane but he isn’t doing this because of you,” Waverly responded as she squeezed Nicole’s hand, “I have an idea of where he could be, they tend to hang out in an abandoned building, which is creepy enough in itself but I’m not sure that anyone would bother to look for him there right now.”

“If you think that’s where he could be then that’s where we should go,” Nicole nodded, turning to the smaller woman, “Are you going to be okay?”

“I have you with me, I’ll be fine.” She gave Nicole a nod of confidence before leaning up on her toes to press a small kiss to the redhead’s lips.

Without another word they made their way out to Nicole’s car, the brunette driving in silence with only concentration on her face. Nicole’s mind was racing and her stomach churned, she knew Bobo had taken Nedley because of her, she knew that he was in danger all because he wanted to give Nicole an ultimatum that she didn’t want to face. She had been completely content with Waverly just moments ago and now it had been torn away from her like she knew only too well.

The old building wasn’t too far away, Waverly pulling the car up well away from the entrance but she was able to see multiple cars parked just outside so they guessed they were in the right place. She called her sister, telling her to come as quickly as she could manage with the promise of staying outside until help arrived.

As soon as she was off the phone though she stepped out of the car, looking back at Nicole expectantly as the redhead watched her curiously.

“You just told Wynonna that you’d wait.”

“They’re in there, Nicole,” Waverly shook her head, “If we wait, Nedley could die and any ally we have in the Sherriff’s department could be gone. Nedley is a good man, I’m not going to let Bobo hurt him any further than he already has.”

“We’re going to be really outnumbered.” Nicole tried to reason with the other woman cautiously.

“And I’ll be even more outnumbered unless you come in with me,” Waverly said seriously as she looked towards the building covered in graffiti and broken windows before her eyes locked on Nicole once more, “Please, we can’t let him think he can do whatever he wants and we can’t let this go on any longer.”

“Okay,” Nicole nodded, feeling her heartbeat spike as she stepped out of the car, “Okay but we have to be smart about this.”

“We will be.” Waverly responded as she began to walk with purpose towards the entrance and raising her hand to dispose of the heavy metal doors like it had been nothing.

She exhaled shakily, rubbing her temple subtly as Nicole joined her side as they looked into the darkened industrial building. Nicole flicked her fingers and a flame appeared instantly, lighting the dark entrance front of them; only hearing echoes of the footsteps as they moved ahead cautiously.

“So are we just checking every room until we find Nedley because we’ll be here all night,” Nicole whispered as she felt Waverly clasp her free hand tightly, “What if he isn’t even here?”

“He’s here,” Waverly mumbled through gritted teeth, “I know he is.”

“Okay, if you say so,” Nicole nodded as the flame only grew on her hand, “But let’s get in and get out because this place is creepy as hell.”

“Door on your left,” Waverly whispered, tugging on Nicole’s hand as she took a step backwards, “Someone’s in there.”

Nicole only nodded as they approached the door, looking to each other quickly before the redhead pushed it roughly, her anxiety spiking and her heart dropping as she saw two familiar figures standing in front of her.

“What…how?” Nicole stuttered as she looked back, not finding Waverly behind her and turning her attention back to her parents in the front of the room, “You can’t be here.”

“We found you, Nicole.” Her mother spoke gently but the words cutting through her like a sharp blade.

“You came to Purgatory to escape and we found you.” Her dad stood from his chair and began to approach his daughter, “We’ll always find you.”

“Stay back or I swear to god I will burn you alive,” Nicole clenched her jaw and held her hand out towards her father, the flame roaring in her palm, “I mean it, you need to leave.”

“It was only a matter of time,” Her mother spoke coolly, glancing to her husband who moved towards Nicole, “You’re never far from us and we haven’t stopped looking since you left.”

“How did you find me?” Nicole snapped angrily, “Where is Waverly?”

“You didn’t make it very difficult for us once we found you, we’ve been following you for a while,” Her father replied quickly, “It’s for your own good if you turn yourself in, these people can help you.”

“They don’t help,” Nicole muttered through a clenched jaw as she took a step towards her parents, stopping her father in his tracks, “Take one more step and I will kill you if I have to. You didn’t want me so why don’t I just stop your disappointment right here.”

“Nicole!” She heard Waverly’s voice echo from behind her, turning to find nothing but an empty space.

“You’re not going to hurt us, if you were going to then you would have done it by now,” Her father spat angrily, “Don’t you dare threaten us.”

“Nicole, whatever you’re seeing isn’t real!” Waverly’s voice echoed louder behind her, feeling as if the wind had been knocked out of her when she could finally see the youngest Earp holding her hand out towards another woman who was pressed roughly against the wall with her feet dangling, “She’s making you see something that’s not real.”

“They’re not here?” Nicole asked with wide eyes, looking back towards front of the room to see it empty before her attention moved to Waverly frowning angrily and tightening her hand, “This is Gretta, I didn’t know she was with Bobo but she makes you see whatever she wants. Gretta, you’re going to need to apologize to Nicole for whatever she saw.”

“I know her,” A realization dawned on Nicole, looking at a woman whom she had briefly come across in her travels before, “We’ve met.”

“I thought I recognized you,” Gretta heaved for breath as Waverly only pushed her further towards the ceiling with just her mind, “Okay, I’m sorry. Bobo told me to make you see your parents so I did. I’m only here because he’s given me a place to stay but he’s bat shit crazy, everyone here knows that.”

“So why did you do what he asked?” Nicole questioned angrily, feeling a stinging in her eyes as the feeling of relief and anxiety crashing on her all at once, “Why didn’t you refuse?”

“Because he would have killed me,” Gretta yelled, coughing as she spoke, “Let me down and I’ll tell you where he is, I’ll tell you where he’s holding Nedley.”

“So they’re here?” Waverly asked raising her eyebrows, seemingly loosening the grip she held over Gretta at the information.

“Yes, he brought Nedley here a few hours ago,” Gretta confirmed with a nod, “If you let me down, I’ll tell you exactly where they are.”

“I’ll let you down once you tell me where they are,” Waverly shook her head quickly, “So start talking or you’re going to run out of air.”

Nicole was surprised by Waverly’s hardness, not something she was used to witnessing but she couldn’t deny how impressed she was with the other girl. It was a side to her that Nicole had never seen before and it erased any doubt that may have been lingering in the very back of the redhead’s mind.

“He’s got Nedley in the basement, the rest of his group have scattered around town after what happened at the police station but he’s here,” Gretta spoke with a strained voice, “Please, I’m going to choke to death.”

Waverly sighed loudly, dropping her hand to her side as Gretta fell to the ground harshly; her head thumping against the wall as she reached the bottom rendering her unconscious instantly. She turned to Nicole who was watching with concern on her face; Waverly shaking off the redhead’s concern before their eyes both shifted back to Gretta.

“She won’t be out long but I don’t think she’ll come after us,” Waverly spoke quietly, her tone uneven, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Nicole swallowed thickly, “How did you know she was here?”

“I could feel her straight away and I blocked her out, she’s lived in Purgatory for a long time so I know her pretty well,” Waverly explained with a quiet sigh, “What did she make you see?”

“My parents,” The redhead’s voice broke as her hands clenched into balls beside her, “Bobo must have told her about them. Thank you for pulling me out.”

“Of course,” Waverly reached her hand up to cup Nicole’s face gently, even through the darkness the brunette’s eyes were sparkling, “We’ll talk about this later, okay? We need to go find Nedley.”

“Basement.” Nicole responded with a nod, leaning down to press a quick kiss on Waverly’s lips before they left the room with Gretta still unmoving.

Nicole’s hand lit up once more whilst the walked, finding the door down to the basement steps sooner than they had expected. She glanced back to Waverly who gave her a quick nod, turning her concentration to the heavy doors as they burst open with force and the two girls moved without hesitation.

Nicole took point with her hand out in front of her, steeling herself for the moment that she would face Bobo but when it happened, it wasn’t something she was completely ready for.

Sherriff Nedley was tied to a chair, slumped over with his hands bound behind his back and blood covering his ripped uniform with Bobo sitting on his knee with a look of glee on his face. The room was dark but an open window towards the top of the basement filled the room with enough moonlight for them to see exactly what was going on around them partnered with Nicole’s fire.

“I was hoping it would be the two of you that found us here,” Bobo’s voice was care free and whimsical, “You’re definitely the smartest and it looks like you got passed my little distraction.”

“Get off him, Bobo,” Waverly spoke impatiently, “Do you know what you’ve started tonight?”

“I’ve started what I intend to finish in a few days and all I’ve done is placed a little pressure on your backs,” Bobo shook his head, hitting Nedley on the chest roughly; causing the Sherriff to splutter, “I want you to see that where you’re standing right now is a losing side. Whatever you’re doing to try and stop me isn’t going to be enough so if you don’t join me then you’re either going to die or you’re going to fail.”

“Step away from Nedley,” Waverly warned steadily as she raised her hand, “I won’t ask you again.”

“As much as this excites me, my dear, I’m going to have to pass on this showdown until the pep rally if you make it there,” He said with a smirk, finally standing from Nedley’s lap, “I know this place is about to be crawling so I’m going to scurry off but you might want to check one more room in here before you leave. Nedley’s daughter was so ill-timed in bringing her father dinner and I couldn’t pass up this two for one offer.”

“What have you done with Chrissy?” Waverly snapped, the concentration in her voice pushing Bobo up against the wall roughly, “I swear to god, if you’ve hurt her too…”

“You’re going to need to find out and you’re going to need to do that quickly because that rope around a certain part of her body is sure going to hurt if she accidently falls off the steady stool I’ve placed her on,” Bobo gestured towards the stairs of the basement, “Especially considering there’s a lot of metal in that stool and I’m the one keeping it there.”

“Where is she?” Nicole asked with a clenched jaw, moving towards the stairs.

“No, not you,” Bobo responded with a smirk, “Your girl Waverly is going to save the day and you’re going to stay here. Before I disappear, you and I have some unfinished business.”

“I’m not leaving you alone here with her.” Waverly retorted bitterly, glancing to Nicole who gave her a worried look.

“The clock is ticking, the more we argue; the closer your friend gets,” Bobo gestured to the stairs once more, “Waverly, you best go.”

“Go, I’ll be fine.” Nicole steadied herself, giving Waverly another nod as she watched the other woman hesitate.

Bobo did as little as raise his eyebrows when they heard a blood-curdling scream in the distance of the small mill. It didn’t take another second for Waverly to turn on her heel and rush up the stairs to locate her friend, leaving only Nicole, Bobo and an unconscious Nedley standing in the basement.

“So here we are,” Bobo smirked, Waverly’s grip on his body being released, “Just like we were last night.”

“The answer is no and it’s always going to be no,” Nicole’s voice was shaky but her hand held steady, holding a burning flame in front of her body to defend whatever Bobo was going to throw at her, “Whatever you think you’re going to accomplish, we’re going to stop it.”

“I don’t know what it is about people like you, your god complex is sickening,” Bobo’s demeanor changed almost instantly as the words left Nicole’s mouth, “You think you can change these people’s minds, you think you can bring out the good in them but you can’t. They know what they’re going to do to people like us but they don’t do anything to stop it from happening.”

“What you’re planning isn’t going to make anything better, it’s only going to make things worse,” Nicole responded as quickly as she could manage, hearing the screaming in the distance stop instantly, “I’m not joining you and I’m going to do whatever I can to stop you, no matter what it costs.”

“Then your righteousness is going to cost you your life,” Bobo growled, pulling at his coat tightly, “And if you’re not with me then you’re just standing in my way and we know what that means.”

“If you’re going to try and kill me then you might as well do it now,” Nicole spoke bravely as she heard sirens in the distance, the sound making her more unsettled than she wanted to admit, “And I’m not going to let you get away.”

“You’re not going to have a choice,” Bobo responded with a shrug, “And after you meet these bastards, tell me again who you think is innocent in all of this.”

“Nicole!” Waverly called desperately, the fear in her voice causing a momentary distraction that Bobo needed as the redhead turned towards the sound of the brunette’s voice.

By the time she turned back, Bobo had somehow disappeared causing Nicole great confusion but when she heard Waverly scream her name again; she couldn’t move towards the other girl any faster.

She rushed up the stairs seeing Chrissy Nedley with her arm around Waverly’s shoulder for support, relatively unharmed but terrified. Waverly was pale, all the colour had run from her face as she held her phone up in front of her.

“Black Badge are coming, Moody and his team are with the police and they’re going to be here any second,” Waverly rushed her words, struggling to get them out clearly, “You need to get out of here while you can or you need to hide.”

“I’m not going to leave you here by yourself,” Nicole said with reassurance in her tone, not willing to leave Waverly there by herself, “I’m in this with you.”

“If you don’t go now, they’ll find out you were here and they’ll know I lied to them,” Waverly’s panic setting in her tone, “It’s not safe for any of us if they find you and I’m scared as hell to see what they’ll do to you in here if they find you now. You’ve got to go.”

“Okay,” Nicole swallowed thickly as the sirens began to grow clearer, “Bobo’s gone, he went through the window and I couldn’t stop him.”

“That’s okay, Nicole but I need you to leave,” The desperation in Waverly’s voice was growing by the second as she adjusted her grip on her friend, “Chrissy or Nedley didn’t see anything and as long as we have them both safe then we should be okay but I can’t be worried about you and trying to hold Black Badge off at the same time. I’ll come find you when we’re done tonight but I need you to go. There’s a back road that leads out towards the Homestead, keep your lights off until you get out of here and you should be safe.”

“Be careful.” Nicole’s voice was regretful as she gave the woman she cared about so greatly one last look before grasping her keys in her pocket and moving towards her car.

It was a slim escape, slimmer than her exit from the homestead the first time she had escaped Black Badge but she knew she had left just in time. She couldn’t help but look back towards the old building regretfully, not wanting to leave Waverly inside by herself and knowing the brunette had once again saved her from an early run in with Black Badge.

Her stomach churned as she clung tightly to the steering wheel, thinking of what Waverly was about to endure at the hands of Black Badge thanks to Bobo. His violence had drawn unwanted attention and unwarranted consequences directly onto The Earp’s laps for them to deal with once again; as if the Ear curse was alive and well.

She could only wait once she arrived home at her cabin for what felt like days. She pulled a chair towards the window, cracking the blinds to see any approaching vehicle from a distance whether it be a threat or a welcome relief but she knew it would be a while before she saw anything either way.

Waverly had sacrificed herself again for Nicole, causing a large wave of guilt to wash over the redhead for all the harsh words she had ever spoke to the brunette when all she had ever done was try and protect her. It was Bobo who was to blame for everything, for Black Badge’s presence in Purgatory and for their latest obstacle they were forced to overcome. It cemented her thoughts of needing to be there for Waverly, it cemented her feelings for the brunette as being one of the strongest reactions she had felt for anything.

She sat there for at least an hour, lost in her thoughts until she heard the loud hum of Waverly’s jeep approaching her cabin. She stood from her seat, feeling her legs sway slightly after keeping the same position for so long but it didn’t matter because when the door opened; it was Waverly Earp who emerged from the car.

She had an anxious look on her face and it took every ounce of self control to not rip the door off it’s hinges on her way out to greet the brunette but she knew she needed to feel Waverly in her arms sooner rather than later.

Before Waverly could even knock, Nicole had opened the door and pulled the smaller woman into a bone crushing hug, feeling the brunette bury her head into the nape of her neck. She breathed in the comforting scent of Waverly’s shampoo, holding her tightly as they rocked slowly for what felt like an eternity and it was the only thing that Nicole wanted to do for the rest of the night.

“As much as I’m enjoying this, could we maybe go somewhere warmer?” She heard Waverly utter, feeling her lips against the skin of her neck.

“Sorry, come inside before you freeze to death,” Nicole came to her senses, pulling the younger woman inside and closing the door behind them. She reached both hands to cup Waverly’s cheeks gently, the warmth of her skin a stark contrast to the brunette’s cool skin, “Are you okay?”

“I’m tired and my head hurts after that but I’m okay,” Waverly replied with a nod, her hands coming to rest upon Nicole’s, “Nedley is pretty beat up and Chrissy is pretty shaken but they’re going to be fine. We saved their lives tonight, Nicole.”

“I didn’t do a lot, you were the badass who did most of it,” Nicole said shakily, unable to stop herself as she leaned down to kiss Waverly swiftly. She heard Waverly hum in approval against her lips before she pulled away, feeling the warmth in her chest spread throughout her body, “I was so worried.”

“I know, that’s why I came straight here,” Waverly nodded with a small smile as her eyes fluttered open once again, “And I thought after the night we’ve had, maybe I could keep you company and stay over? That’s only if you’re okay with that.”

“Yeah, I’d like that,” Her tone shining with nothing but sincerity, dropping her hands to Waverly’s to tug her towards the small couch, “What happened after I left?”

“It was only Moody and a few of his agents but I think we’ve held them off for now,” Waverly said with a nod, “It took some convincing that we could control the situation and I had to hold them off a little so they didn’t know anything about the pep rally but it went as well as it could have. Bobo’s stunt tonight put us all in danger and I didn’t want them to find you there when they still don’t know you’re involved.”

“They’re going to find out at the pep rally, one way or another.”

“You’re right, they will but it’s best for everyone if we can hold that off for now,” Waverly rubbed her eyes tiredly, shuffling as close as she could to Nicole, “The longer I can keep them away from you, the better.”

“Thank you,” Nicole’s voice was just above a whisper as she felt walls of guilt fall around her, “I’m sorry I ever doubted you, I’m sorry I held everything over your head for as long as I did and after tonight, after seeing Bobo’s actions; I’m all in with stopping him. Whatever it means and whatever consequences come from it, I’m in.”

“What did Bobo say to you?” Waverly asked sympathetically, her thumbs stroking the backs of Nicole’s hands.

“He wanted my decision and when I told him no, he told my that my righteousness was going to get me killed,” Nicole swallowed thickly, recalling the conversation she had shared with Bobo earlier, “I’m not doing this because I want to be a hero, I’m not even doing this because I want to protect all these people; I’m doing it because if no one else is willing to stop someone like Bobo then I’ll step in with you to end it. I’m doing this because maybe we can change a few perspectives but I’m not totally under the impression that I’m going to come out of this unscathed one way or another.”

“It’s going to cost us something, whether it be our identities or our way of life but we’ll protect each other as well as we can,” Waverly reassured Nicole, leaning forwards to rest her forehead against the redhead’s, “You’re with us now, you don’t have to do this alone and maybe this could mean you don’t have to run anywhere for a while. This could make things better for us, this could make things worse but at least people will see the truth, that not all of us are monsters.”

“Running is what I do best but people knowing what I am is going to make it a whole lot harder,” Nicole admitted with a heavy sigh, “I don’t suppose they found Gretta, did they?”

“She was long gone,” Waverly leaned back slowly, but trying to stay as close to Nicole as possible with both women feeling the need to comfort the other, “So you’d met her before?”

“In passing very briefly, we stayed in the same safehouse before it was raided so I knew what she could do,” Nicole was pulled back into that room in the abandoned mill in front of her parents, “I had no idea how real it could feel though. How did you pull yourself out of that?”

“I felt something trying to influence me immediately so I just pushed outside of my mind like I do when Black Badge try to get inside my head and it worked,” Waverly nodded with a sigh, giving Nicole’s hand a squeeze, “I don’t really know how I pulled you out of it yet but I’m glad I could.”

“I’m glad you could too, honestly I thought my parents were in front of me.”

“You said that but what did she actually show you?” Waverly raised her eyebrows, pity shifting on her features.

“Bobo must have told her that I had been running from them and they were just antagonizing me,” Nicole shook her head slowly, “it wasn’t anything bad but they’d found me and they were just as cold as I remember them being. It just felt so real.”

“It must have but at least you know now that it wasn’t real,” Waverly added confidently with a small smile, shifting her face so that their lips were just inches apart, “This might be a bit of a mess but we’re in it together now, you’re not alone anymore.”

“I’m sorry it took me so long to realize that you’ve just been trying to help me this whole time.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t honest with you in the first place,” Waverly said seriously, her lips grazing Nicole’s before leaning back so she could look the redhead in the eyes, “Better late than never, right?”

“I guess so,” Nicole nodded, her heart racing inside her chest, “Is your sister mad that we went inside without waiting for her?”

“She’s furious but she’ll get over it, we did what we had to do,” Waverly responded with a shrug, “God, you’re cute when you’re worried, Haught.”

“Why do you think Bobo attacked the Sherriff’s department tonight?”

“I don’t know why he does a lot of things but Wynonna seems to think that he just wanted to prove how untouchable he is before the pep rally,” Waverly suggested, shifting her body to snuggle herself into Nicole’s side and rest her hands in the redhead’s lap, “Honestly, I think he was trying to impress you.”

“Impress me?” Nicole shook her head, not understanding Waverly’s reasoning.

“He asked you to think about joining him, he wanted to prove to you how much control he has over this town,” Waverly spoke slowly, her voice evening out, “It wouldn’t be the first time he has pulled a stunt like that to convince someone to join him. You’re different though because you’ve actually got a backbone.”

“I guess Bobo presents hope to some people, as crazy as that sounds to say aloud,” Nicole said simply, stating her thoughts aloud, “He has conviction and he makes sense to them so they believe it but surely they have to know that what they’re doing is wrong.”

“The alternative I guess is running or being taken away,” Waverly countered gently, her hands closing tightly over the material of Nicole’s shirt near her stomach, “People like us aren’t really afforded a lot of opportunities. It’s hard out there and I get that.”

“You know how we were going to try and just be normal for a while tonight before the whole Nedley thing happened?” Nicole asked quietly with a sigh, leaning down to place a lingering kiss atop of Waverly’s head, “Do you think we could try and do that now?”

“I would love to,” Waverly smiled widely, tugging gently on Nicole’s shirt, “You sure you’re okay with me staying here tonight? If you don’t want me to be in your space, I get it.”

“I don’t want you to be anywhere else,” Nicole spoke firmly, realizing momentarily how quickly the brunette had taken an iron grip over her heart, “Did you bring anything with you or do you need to go back to the homestead?”

“I have a bag in the car, I didn’t want to assume you’d just be okay with me staying the night,” Waverly shrugged, as they looked at the space in front of them, “But if I’m going to stay over then we’re going to need to get you a TV or something.”

“I’ve never stayed in one place long enough to need one and it’s impossible for me to carry around with me when I’m evading the police or agents,” Nicole shrugged lightly, a smile tugging on her lips, “I’ll just have to entertain you another way.”

“Oh I’ve got something that will keep me pretty entertained but it might just annoy you.”

“And what’s that?” The redhead asked, genuinely curious as to what Waverly had in mind.

“Well I got Doc to run an errand for me today, something that will come in handy for you when you need to contact us.” Waverly said with a nod, craning her neck so she could look Nicole in the eyes, “And I know you don’t want one but right now, it’s too important for you not to have one.”

“Waves, if I get a phone; they’ll be able to track me.” Nicole said seriously, concern shifting onto her features.

“It’s a burner, nothing permanent but it could be useful to communicate to you outside of just talking face to face,” Waverly’s eyes begged for Nicole to see reason and although the redhead didn’t want to admit it aloud just yet, she knew the younger girl was right and she knew she would concede, “What if something happens and I need to warn you ahead of time or if I need your help?”

“I use it until this pep rally is done but after that, I’m throwing it away,” Nicole compromised after a moment of thought, “But it’s way too easy for anyone to trace me, even with a burner phone. It’s just something that you learn from watching the mistakes of other people around you.”

“Well hopefully after we stop Bobo, you’re not going to have to worry about who is tracking you,” Waverly responded with a nod, “But for right now, we’re just being normal teenagers.”

“I don’t know if that’s possible but I’m happy to just be Nicole and Waverly for the rest of the night rather than two people with abilities trying to stop a psychopath after school,” Nicole joked darkly, running a hand through her hair before her arms wrapped tightly around Waverly, “Who I’m mad at the more I think about the fact that he’s chosen a pep rally to try the stunt he’s going to pull.”

“I know what you mean, as if pep rally’s aren’t painful enough.”

“No, I just mean that saving everyone is going to be awful hard when I’m distracted by you in your cheer uniform.” Nicole joked with a chuckle, feeling a warmth slip through her body as laughter left Waverly’s lips after the brunette gave her the gentlest of nips of the skin right below her jawline.

As their playful conversation continued, Nicole slowly forgot about how shaken she had been after seeing her parents even though she wasn’t there and how scared she found herself at Bobo’s lack of remorse. Waverly was talked about a lot rather than talked to and it was something that Nicole knew bugged her, she knew that the youngest Earp wanted to be valued and taken seriously rather than being pushed aside even though she seemed to be the tipping point of the war ahead.

All Nicole knew that she had found Waverly right when she needed her and found her to be a key to her survival in more ways than one. She just hoped that moments like what she was experiencing weren’t going to cease once Bobo tried his attack on Purgatory High because it was something that Nicole had craved her whole life and was willing to risk it all just to keep.

Whatever abilities Waverly had caved in comparison to the sweet, protective, passionate, kind person Nicole had found her to be. Someone who had every potential to break her heart in more ways than one but was going to every length to prove that she wouldn’t and Nicole wondered what she ever did to deserve that.   

A war was brewing quickly, Bobo’s actions would only cause the town to shift further to an ‘us or them’ mentality and Nicole knew they’re job was going to be a lot trickier after what happened to Nedley but she had to try. She couldn’t sit on the fence any longer because the fence wouldn’t allow her freedom and it certainly wouldn’t allow any further moments like that with Waverly.

She just hoped that Waverly would understand if she needed to keep Wynonna’s promise and take her as far away from the only home she had ever known.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What were your thoughts? This is building to the last 3 or so chapters where there's going to be a lot happening all at once so hopefully you guys don't mind!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all, sorry for the delay to anyone who is following! It's been a crazy time at work. Let me know what you think of this chapter!

1 day. 24 hours were all that separated Nicole and the upcoming pep rally. Plans had been laid and preparations had been made but the redhead knew that in the blink of an eye, things could change and they were going to have to be ready to think on their feet.

They weren’t going to have the chance to surrender; they weren’t going to have the chance to escape once they locked themselves inside that gym. They were going in for an all out war, they were going in to survive and they were going in to defeat Bobo and whomever he decided to bring with him.

They hadn’t seen or heard from Bobo since the incident at the Sherriff’s department, it was like he had dropped off the face of the earth completely but they knew he was just laying in wait like a predator as he stalked in prey. Black Badge managed to sweep most of the incident at the Sherriff’s department under the rug, the town of Purgatory didn’t know any better than what was reported as a scuffle inside due to a disgruntled employee.

As the day of the pep rally approached quickly, Nicole became extremely anxious knowing that she was going to have to shut off most of her emotions once she stepped inside that gym and keep her wits about her because nothing was going to be as it seemed with Bobo. She had a back up plan if she and Waverly needed to flee, not having told the brunette about any such idea just yet and not willing to unless she needed to execute the plan.

Waverly wouldn’t go willingly and she wouldn’t be happy that Nicole and Wynonna made plans without her but if that’s what the redhead needed to do to ensure the younger woman’s survival, than she would do what she needed and beg for forgiveness later.

She had reason to be more nervous than Waverly, Doc, Dolls or Wynonna because she was yet to cross paths with Black Badge and she was yet to see what they were really like from up close. She had her fair share of close calls, of paths crossed without meeting but she was very aware that once everything went down she was going to have no choice but to face them head on as well.

All of these thoughts were on a constant loop within her mind as the time only grew closer to the moment where she would stand toe to toe with Bobo Del Rey, which was a scary thought in itself. She knew in reality there would be no winners because powered individuals would be going head to head and she would have to adopt the mentality that it was either herself or someone on the other side who was going to have to be put away and she wasn’t willing for it to be herself.

She stood in front of her car, leaning on the hood with her arms folded over her chest after she had finished her last track practice before the pep rally. The sun was setting, a beautiful ripple of orange shining over the horizon as if the world was completely oblivious to the horrors that would occur the very next evening. Nicole shook the thought from her mind, watching the usually busy parking lot empty out almost instantly after practice had finished but she would have to wait a little longer to take her leave.

An unfamiliar vibration came from her pocket, the phone that Waverly had made her use burning against the material of her jeans; still not used to carrying the small burner even if she was just going to discard it after the pep rally. She had only given her number to 4 people being the only 4 people she interacted with in Purgatory but still feeling uncomfortable having it with her when she was so used to living off the grid as best as she could.

Nicole pulled the phone from her pocket, not being able to help the smile that appeared on her face when she saw the message from Waverly apologizing for her lateness. Their drives to and from school had turned into a daily routine that wasn’t going unnoticed by the students around them and Nicole found herself becoming increasingly aware of the amount of attention it was bringing her.

Her mind was wiped blank when she saw Waverly rushing towards her with a sheepish smile, her bag pulled over her shoulder and her cheer uniform unusually dirtied. Nicole pushed off her car, wordlessly questioning whether Waverly had run into any trouble but as if she understood the communication the brunette shook her off with the sheepish smile still on her lips. As she reached the car Nicole removed her hoodie, handing it to a shivering Waverly who gratefully accepted it before placing a gentle kiss on the redhead’s cheek.

“Sorry, practice did not go the way I wanted it to and if we weren’t going into this whole literal do or die situation tomorrow I would actually worry about what our performance is going to be like,” Waverly spoke quickly as she pulled the hoodie over her small frame, “Let’s get in your car though or you’re the one who is going to freeze out here.”

“I’d be fine,” Nicole said with a small smile as she gestured to her hands, cursing the sense of giddiness Waverly evoked automatically, “Let’s get you home huh?”

“Are you staying at the homestead tonight?” Waverly asked hopefully, another thing that had become a habit over the last few days. The first time wasn’t something they planned, Nicole falling asleep on Waverly’s floor after finishing their English project before the brunette coaxed her into the warm double bed and since that moment; the redhead weirdly struggled to sleep in her own bed, “I mean it probably makes more sense for you to stay home but I’d be lying if I said I wanted to be alone tonight.”

“If you want me there, that’s where I’ll be,” Nicole voice soft and warm as they got into the car. Waverly leaned over without another word to kiss the redhead with such enthusiasm and surprise that a quiet yelp left Nicole’s throat. The older girl blushed heavily as Waverly pulled away, clearing her throat and starting the engine with her two hands gripping the steering wheel, “I don’t want to be anywhere else tonight anyway.”

“Good because this whole risking our lives thing tomorrow is really starting to freak me out.”

 “Me too but we’ll have each others back in that gym and I promise that I’ll protect you no matter what,” Nicole pulled out of the school parking lot driving towards the homestead, “I know you’ll do the same for me too.”

“Of course I will,” Waverly’s voice became firm and sincere before a few minutes of comfortable silence crossed the two, “I just have a feeling that Bobo has something up his sleeve that we’re not going to be prepared for.”

“After everything I’ve seen of Bobo, I think you’re right but we just have to deal with whatever is being thrown at us because if we don’t then we’re pretty screwed,” Nicole swallowed thickly, thinking of Bobo’s proposition towards her, “Maybe I should have said yes to him.”

“Maybe you should have what?” Waverly raised her eyebrows, looking at the other girl in surprise, “We’re talking about Bobo, right?”

“I just mean that maybe I could have said yes joining his group just for this, so you guys had someone on the inside,” Nicole shrugged quickly, “I know how much of a risk that would have been but maybe I could have done it.”

“No, I’m glad you didn’t say yes to him,” Waverly responded almost as soon as the words left Nicole’s mouth, “If Wynonna thinks we can do this then I trust her so I don’t need you taking any other risks.”

“You’re the boss,” Nicole spoke weakly, a faded smile on her lips, “Let’s talk about something else, huh? My brain was already about to explode today so it might be nice to talk about something other than what’s happening tomorrow for a minute.”

“Should we talk about how much you’re loving your new phone?” Waverly nudged the redhead gently in the ribs as she drove, reaching her hand to rest on Nicole’s knee, “I saw you playing on it before I got to the car.”

“I was reading your message and trying to figure out how to turn the phone off,” Nicole shook her head, gesturing to the phone beside her in her cup holder, “As soon as this is all done, I’m doing exactly what this phone is meant to be and burning it.”

“You seriously don’t want to keep it?”

“They’re too easy to track, Waves,” Nicole said with a shake of her head, “They’re too easy to associate numbers with, they’re too easy to pinpoint locations and access search histories. It’s not worth the risk and I’ve been okay without them before.”

“But that’s because you haven’t had a girlfriend before all of this.” Waverly stopped as soon as the casual words left her mouth, her eyes so wide that Nicole didn’t even have to look at her completely to know how mortified the other girl was that she had just spoke those words.

“I haven’t had a girlfriend?” Nicole questioned with raised eyebrows, trying not to give away the jolt of warmth that simple word sent shooting through her body.

“What I meant to say was that you haven’t had a friend that’s a girl, or a boy for that matter,” Waverly stumbled over her words, her hand tightening over Nicole’s knee, “You haven’t had a boyfriend or a girlfriend to contact because you didn’t really have any friends. Not that you didn’t have friend’s I’m sure but you just didn’t feel the need to keep in contact with them. Feel free to just jump in because I’m clearly talking myself into the ground here.”

“I kind of wanted to see how deep you’d go,” Nicole joked playfully, noting the embarrassment in Waverly’s tone but also the fact that their banter happened between them so easily, so organically, “I definitely didn’t have a boyfriend because I’m gay and yes, I had friends but being on the run doesn’t really afford you to have texting buddies when you’re trying to stay undetectable in a world that’s hunting people like us.”

“I just meant that you didn’t have friends that you needed to keep in touch with,” Waverly sighed heavily, shaking her head slowly as her attention turned to the world outside the car, “Besides, it’s nice being able to know you’re okay when you’re not with me.”

“That part is nice,” Nicole swallowed thickly as they rolled to a stop outside of the homestead, both girls shocked at how quickly they had reached their destination, “You’re right though. I haven’t really had to consider other people for a very long time because it’s just been me so I like that we can keep in contact but it’s not easy for me to come to terms with that. What is easy for me to come to terms with is how much I love spending time with you and how lucky I’d be to even have the word girlfriend associated between us.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, really,” The redhead with a warm smile, “Listen, whatever happens tomorrow; I’m here okay? I’ll be right beside you so if you feel like you’re losing control or you need help, I will be next to you the whole time. We just have to be ready for what is going to be thrown at us and we have to be ready to face our thoughts after everything happens because we can’t exactly afford to just shoot to stun tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Waverly muttered, sighing heavily as she ran a hand through her hair, “Should we go inside?”

Nicole only nodded, the weight of the situation hitting both girls in the car suddenly. There had been much talk between the group about the pep rally but she had to wonder if the rest of them were feeling as nervous as she was. Nicole was the odd one out, she trusted Waverly more than she was comfortable with but she had to believe that they were all on the same page and that she knew exactly what was going on.

The Homestead was quiet throughout the evening; the tension was thick through the air and almost tangible. Nicole and Waverly sat in the brunette’s room watching a movie that neither of them were paying attention to; both once again lost in their own thoughts as they heard the door open downstairs.

“Waves? You home?” Wynonna loudly called with an anxious tone in her voice.

“I guess we should go downstairs,” Waverly mumbled through the huskiness in her tone, “She’s been with Dolls all day.”

Nicole nodded wordlessly, the two making their way downstairs to see Wynonna, Dolls, Doc and another man standing in the kitchen around the table with a pile of weapons in the middle.

“Did you forget that we have abilities?” Waverly asked slowly as her eyes focused on the pile of guns in front of them, “And that Bobo will just turn those around on you?”

“We’re going to be outnumbered but we’re not going to be outgunned,” Wynonna said with a smirk, gesturing to the unknown man across from them, “For once that sounded as cool as I thought it would.”

“This is Perry, the agent I was talking to you about,” Dolls said with a nod, “Perry, Waverly and Nicole.”

“Waverly, I’ve heard a lot about you,” Perry said with a warm smile, his eyes landing on Nicole, “And from what Dolls has told me about you, you’re a resource that we’d be lucky to have.”

“I’m a person, not a resource,” Nicole said uncomfortably, everything within her body screaming at her to leave as quickly as she could with her first encounter with someone from black badge outside of Dolls, “I’m only here to help Wynonna and Waverly, not you.”

“Well, Perry is actually here to help us,” Dolls spoke quickly with a shake of his head, “The guns aren’t for anyone else but Bobo, stocked with wooden bullets and made from plastic so he can’t manipulate them. I know Wynonna has peacemaker but we can’t leave everything for them to do or we’re going to fail.”

“So you made these guns specifically for Bobo?” Waverly asked with wide eyes, glancing to her sister who gave the younger girl a small shrug.

“For people like Bobo,” Perry confirmed with a nod, “And I want you to know that you have my full support putting a stop to this attack he’s planning tomorrow. I’ll do whatever I can behind the scenes to make sure you’re all kept safe after this as soon as we take care of Moody.”

“What does that mean?” Nicole questioned instantly, a lump rising in her throat as her stomach churned.

“It means what it sounds like,” Waverly said through gritted teeth looking to her sister, “What is he talking about?”

“We’ll talk about this after but for now, we need what Perry is giving us,” Wynonna said seriously, shaking her head subtly, “We really don’t have much of a choice.”

“So we’re going to save a gym full of people and then we’re going to have to kill someone?” Waverly raised her eyebrows, “When were you guys going to let us know about this?”

“We weren’t.” Doc said regretfully, ducking his head to avoid eye contact.

“We were going to take care of it after the pep rally and we still are, you’re going to have nothing to do with it,” Wynonna swallowed thickly as she looked to Perry, “We need this and we need to make sure we do whatever we have to so we’re safe after all of this. If we all get captured after this then it was for nothing.”

“So saving hundreds of lives is for nothing?” Waverly challenged angrily, her chest starting to rise and fall quickly.

“That’s not what I meant, baby girl,” Wynonna said in a defeated tone, “It’s worth everything but your safety is worth even more. I need to protect you and if Perry can give us a better chance of being safe then we’re going to do whatever he needs.”

“And what protection are we getting?” Waverly asked with a shake of her head, her hands clasping tightly beside her.

“As long as I am at the helm, Black Badge will leave you alone if you give your word to help us in any situations like the one you’re facing,” Perry said confidently, as kindly as he could offer, “I don’t want Moody dead but if he isn’t gone then he’s just going to come after you. I want to leave you alone as much as I can and I will work hard to let you live normal lives.”

“Well thanks for that,” Waverly scoffed angrily, rocking on her toes slightly before pushing off her heel to head towards the stairs, “This is ridiculous.”

Nicole stood awkwardly in the room, looking at the pained expression on Wynonna’s face and sighing heavily. She didn’t agree with the plan the group had made but she also understood that they needed to do whatever they could to cover themselves. She just couldn’t help but feel that Wynonna had made another deal with the devil, one that could very well cost the dark-haired woman her soul.

She didn’t utter another word, following Waverly’s trail as it still blazed up towards her room where she found the other woman sitting on her bed with her head in her hands.

“Waves,” Nicole croaked, closing the door with a quiet click, “Talk to me.”

“How did I not know that he would ask for something in return?” Waverly asked bitterly, her voice catching in her throat, “Moody is a bastard, he is horrible and cruel but if we kill him then we’re not any better.”

“I know and I don’t like the way Perry just thinks of us, of you, but Wynonna is just trying to end this,” Nicole said with a shrug, her words gaining attention from Waverly’s fiery gaze, “She’s trying to protect you and I can’t fault her for that. I know what it’s like out there, it’s us or them Waves and if Perry can keep you safe then maybe just this once it’s…I don’t agree with what they have planned but I don’t know what options you’re left with.”

“You’re taking her side?” Waverly raised an eyebrow, her voice sharp and full of venom, “You think that killing this person, who probably has a family, is going to solve all of our problems?”

“No, I think it’s going to create a whole new set of problems but it sounds like you will be placed in a much safer situation with Perry,” Nicole countered swiftly, taking a step towards the other girl only to feel as if there was a force pushing against her. Waverly’s hand was held up by her side, with tears stinging in her eyes as her jaw clenched, “Waverly, I don’t like the sound of it at all and you know that I’m on your side no matter what, I’m not agreeing with Wynonna’s choice but what I’m trying to say is that it might be your best option right now. Survival is hard and it’s unpleasant at times; which is frustrating because we both know we should be able to live normal lives but we can’t right now. You do what you have to do to get to the next day.”

“And we know how well that went the last time we made a deal to survive,” Waverly spoke angrily, expelling a deep breath, “You were almost taken away because of it.”

“Maybe this is the lesser of two evils and he’s in no way innocent. He’s the reason you’re in the situation you are today,” Nicole spoke almost regretfully, not wanting to agree with this plan but knowing that it could have been the only viable option available to them. Waverly was hurting, Nicole could see that and she wanted to make it stop but in this instance, she didn’t know how, “Do you want me to leave?”

“No,” Waverly admitted with a shake of her head, her hand falling to her side as Nicole felt the resistance on her body drop but deciding that staying in her place, “I don’t want you anywhere but here tonight. I just can’t believe this is what we’ve been reduced to, it’s almost like we have to decide if our lives are worth more than his.”

“He already decided that they weren’t a long time ago, he wouldn’t hesitate to do the same to us.”

“But we’re not him,” Waverly’s voice broke just above a whisper as she ran a hand through her hair slowly, “And Wynonna wasn’t even going to tell me about this…if she didn’t tell me about this then what else could she be hiding? We tell each other everything so I think half the reason why I’m so thrown by this is because she didn’t say a thing.”

“If things go badly tomorrow, she wants me to take you away from Purgatory,” Nicole admitted after thinking carefully, knowing that the other girl deserved to know the truth as the feeling of guilt overwhelmed her, “She wanted me to take you with me to somewhere safe because she thinks I’m the only person you’d come with and I know how to survive on the run.”

“She’s right,” The brunette spoke with a raw voice, emotions flickering over her expression, “I would go with you.”

“You…you would?” Nicole questioned, not being able to hide her surprise at the smaller girl’s reaction.

She slowly began to bridge the gap between the two, taking steps forward until she could sit down on the bed next to a still Waverly who kept her head in her hands. Nicole could do nothing more than lean over to place a tender kiss against Waverly’s temple, squeezing her eyes shut as she tried to convey her empathy and care through the small gesture.

Waverly shifted as soon as Nicole pulled away, resting her head in the crook of the redhead’s neck as she felt an arm snake around her waist slowly. They sat in deafening silence, only hearing the murmurs of muffled voices downstairs above the quiet breaths being drawn from their lungs.

“To answer your question, yes,” The brunette was the first to break the silence, unwilling to move from their current position, “Maybe that’s what we should do anyway if we’re just going to keep compromising ourselves. Maybe we’re better off hiding somewhere.”

“What about Wynonna?”

“She left me when daddy died, I didn’t hear from my sister for years. Not even a letter or a single phone call,” Waverly spoke words that Nicole knew she didn’t mean but she couldn’t help but admit how good she felt knowing the woman next to her trusted her enough to leave with her, “I love my sister, I appreciate everything she’s done but I’m sick of her trying to make decisions for me. I’m sick of her putting me in the corner like I’m a child.”

“Being on the run is hard and hiding isn’t living, Waves,” Nicole shook her head slowly, pressing a kiss into Waverly’s hair and smelling the all familiar floral scent, “You deserve more than what it can offer you so we’re going to do whatever it takes tomorrow to keep you safe and to keep you here. You’re going to change the world, everyone around you knows that so it’s our job to make sure you can do it.”

 “I’m scared about tomorrow,” Waverly admitted through a shudder as she pushed away slowly from Nicole to gain her eye contact, “There’s so much at risk and so much happening but I’m scared that Bobo is going to try and hurt you to get to me.”

“You can’t worry about that, okay?” Nicole steeled firmly with a sad smile, “I will handle whatever is thrown at me so I need you just to concentrate on what you’re doing and we’ll be fine. I just found you too so do you think you’re going to be able to get rid of me that quickly?”

“Thank you for coming up to talk to me, I’m sorry I used my abilities to stop you. Dick move,” Waverly responded with a sigh before she leaning to kiss Nicole softly; both melting into each other’s touch, “I guess I was just shocked that Wynonna would decide something like that without telling me. That’s not like her to do something like that.”

“I think you need to talk to her, before tomorrow.” Nicole’s voice grew husky as she felt Waverly’s hand slip under the hem of her shirt, feeling her thumb burning white hot against the skin of her hip. She heard Waverly exhale sharply, their foreheads resting together in a moment of solitude from everything they were fighting, everything they were facing.

In Waverly’s room, it was just the two girls. The two high school seniors who were so much more under the façade of what they let people see around them but there was only transparency between them both. It was just two girls with uncomplicated feelings for each other in an extremely complex situation but that moment wasn’t about what they were about to do or what they had done in the past, it was about that very minute; that very second.

If Nicole would have thought about her future the night she spent sleeping in her car on the outskirts of Purgatory over a week ago she never would have guessed that she would be sitting in Waverly’s bedroom in the position they were in. She was aware of her feelings early on, she knew she didn’t have the ability to hate the younger girl but she didn’t expect Waverly to be so magnetic. She saw immediately the first day why the brunette was the most popular girl in school but what made her special to Nicole was everything that she didn’t let anyone see.

Waverly’s hitched breath tugged Nicole from the deepness of her thoughts, her foggy eyes clearing somewhat as it became apparent that the brunette was going through an identical thinking pattern. Nicole brought her hand up slowly to cup Waverly’s face, her fingers tangling in the hair at the back of her neck pulled the brunette right back down to earth in front of her.

“I don’t want to leave this room,” Waverly whispered, as she leaned into Nicole’s touch, “Not yet.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Nicole said shakily, the rawness and realness of the situation sitting firmly on her chest, “Not unless you tell me to.”

“Then you’re staying.” Her voice firmed when her eyes dipped to focus on Nicole’s lips, the redhead following suit as her thumb gently stroked Waverly’s cheek.

Nicole was going to burst if she didn’t kiss Waverly soon, shifting her hand to that her index finger hooked delicately to tilt the smaller woman’s chin upwards to meet her lips. They moved slowly, Nicole feeling Waverly tense against her before her grip only strengthened on the redhead. Her hand stayed anchored under Nicole’s shirt whilst her body shifted as close as it could to the older woman without physically sitting atop her. The kiss built slowly; teeth dragging against bottom lips, tongues hesitantly seeking the other until it was Waverly who lightly pushed against Nicole to have the redhead’s back pressed against the bed.

Everything began to overwhelm the pair as they fought to keep all of the tension and all of their rushed feelings at bay. Trying to force the reality of what the next day may bring away from their minds as it only lead to a mounting desperation they were feeling towards each other. Waverly needed to feel as close to Nicole as possible and the redhead could feel that in her bones. It was the only thing that was grounding her; Nicole was the only person that could provide her with comfort and security in that moment.

Nicole let Waverly take the lead momentarily, letting her all but straddle her hips as the intensity only grew. Waverly removed her hand from Nicole’s hip, feeling a coolness against the patch of skin she had only just been touching but feeling the brunette’s hands cup both sides of her face. The redhead brought her heated hands to Waverly’s lower back, holding concentration to not lose control of her senses for the chance that she could produce flames could become too great if she didn’t.

She didn’t know how much time they spent in that position, Waverly hovering over her became too much for her to handle and suddenly she found herself flipping their position so she was now on top of the other woman. A tiny gasp left Waverly’s mouth as they broke the kiss; Nicole slowly lowered herself to rest on one elbow beside the smaller girl’s head. She used her other hand to delicately tuck a section of Waverly’s hair behind her ear, becoming almost intoxicated with the with the new feeling of hands shamelessly bunching up the material of shirt on her back.

As their gazes met, a shockwave ripped through Nicole’s body at the intensity and desire in Waverly’s darkened eyes. She felt Waverly’s nails drag gently against her skin as Nicole’s eyes searched the brunette’s face for any hint of hesitation but she found none. Their lips met again after what felt like a millennia but Nicole didn’t keep her focus there for long because after only a moment she turned her attention to the exposed skin of Waverly’s neck that was begging to be kissed.

Nicole moved slowly, praising every warm inch of Waverly’s slender neck. The brunette craned her neck to give the woman on top of her better access, breathing quickly as her hands stayed busy against the redhead’s skin. Nicole gently nipped at Waverly’s skin, soothing what little sting the movement may have caused instantly with the softest of kisses. This continued on slowly until Waverly couldn’t hold out any longer, reaching up to bring Nicole’s lips back to her hungry and awaiting ones.

They lost themselves in Waverly’s bedroom; not knowing how long they spent or how much they missed downstairs but it didn’t bother either of them. It was obvious that they both could have stayed in that room for hours without needing or wanting to do anything else. They’re bodies seemed in tune with each others, being aware of the others needs and feelings all at once.

Eventually they decided they needed to put their feet slowly on the breaks, their cheeks flushed and their lips slightly swollen as their chests rose and fell almost in sync. Nicole tucked Waverly under her chin tightly; holding the other girl as she could possibly manage and not wanting to let go for anything but she knew the morning would come all too soon. She knew before she knew it, they would be standing inside the Purgatory High gym at the pep rally, battling for not only their freedom but their lives.

They spoke quietly about anything but what had just occurred downstairs or what awaited them the next day, Nicole stroking Waverly’s hair and placing kisses to the top of her head until the brunette eventually drifted to sleep. Nicole was shocked at how content she felt with Waverly in her arms, asleep next to her. She held her as tightly as she could, her body wanting nothing more to follow suit and fall asleep but her mind had a very different idea.

Every event that had occurred since she had been in Purgatory ran through her mind like a long replay of what she had experienced up until that moment. She heard movement downstairs, looking at the small alarm clock in Waverly’s room and sighing at the ridiculous time that was facing her and knowing that in just hours she would need to go to school like nothing was happening.

As the movement downstairs continued she sighed heavily, pressing one last, lingering kiss to Waverly’s sweet smelling hair before slowly untangling her body from the youngest Earp. A sense of warmth spread through her chest as she watched the other girl find peace in her sleep; vowing in that moment to do whatever she could to keep the younger woman safe even though she knew Waverly possessed enough power to do so herself.

Nicole walked as quietly as she could towards the door, closing it behind her after turning the light off and leaving Waverly to her sleep. She heard whispered words as she descended down the stairs; stopping when she saw Wynonna and Doc huddled around the kitchen table with their heads close together. Squeaks in the floorboard grasping their attention instantly, both looking up to see a hesitant Nicole moving towards them.

“What are you guys doing?” Nicole raised her eyebrows, shaking off any huskiness from her tone that her tiredness brought.

“Can’t sleep either huh?” Wynonna asked raising her eyebrows, “We’re looking at everything Perry gave us so we know we’re not being set up here.”

“Sounds fun,” Nicole furrowed her eyebrows, “So you don’t totally trust him then?”

“I don’t trust anyone outside of this house, besides Dolls,” Wynonna admitted before sighing loudly, “If you can’t sleep, want to help?”

“Sure,” Nicole nodded, taking a seat at the table as she watched the other two continue their movements, “So are you actually going to do it?”

“I don’t have a choice,” Wynonna’s voice cracked, stopping Nicole in her tracks as she saw an unusually vulnerable expression on her face, “I don’t want to do this but this is what we’re being asked to do. Black Badge are going to be on us like a rash tomorrow if we manage to rid the town of psycho Bobo and unless we have some kind of protection, they’re going to take us all away and we’ll all be dead anyway by the end of the week.”

“I understand,” Nicole said with a shrug, the sick feeling in her stomach returning almost instantly, “This was always going to be stacked against us and as much as I want to stand against it, I probably get it more than anyone. You have to do things you don’t want to sometimes just to see the next day.”

“But I never wanted Waverly to know, I wanted to avoid her looking at me like she did,” Wynonna huffed in frustration, “Now she just thinks I’m wheeling and dealing with lives.”

“I think she understands now, or at least she understands that it’s either Moody or it’s us,” Nicole muttered after an awkward silence fell over the group, “You two need to be the ones to talk about this but she was more upset that you kept it from her rather than just being honest.”

“She would have still hated me for it.”

“She doesn’t hate you but she probably wouldn’t have felt so pushed aside,” Nicole tried to offer as gently as she could whilst being honest, “She wouldn’t have agreed to it and we both know that but at least she would have known.”

“You know your sister is resilient and you know how much she loves you.” Doc chimed in quietly, offering an optimistic but tired smile.

“How is she?” Wynonna asked pointedly, “Are you ready to go if anything happens tomorrow?”

“She’s asleep, which I wasn’t sure she’d be able to do but she needs the rest,” Nicole said simply, trying to stop her heart from fluttering at the events that lead to Waverly falling asleep, “I had to tell Waverly what you asked me to do and I think you should be glad I did. If I can get her to leave, I will if things go wrong. If I can’t, we both know that there’s no chance for anyone to change her mind.”

“I guess it is a good thing that she knows after what she just found out,” Wynonna said with a nod, passing a wooden bullet between her fingers, “Thank you for all your help so far, Haught. She’s going to need you tomorrow, we all are.”

“You’re going to need Waverly, that’s who you’re going to need.” Nicole said honestly and bluntly.

“As much as I hate to admit it, you’re right. We have a plan, okay? Just trust that the three of us have done the best we can to protect ourselves through this,” Wynonna leaned back in her chair, tossing the bullet back at the table, “The world is going to change tomorrow, one way or another and this town has no idea.”

“Probably best that they don’t.” Nicole muttered before sighing deeply, Wynonna's words weighing heavily on her mind. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next stop...the pep rally.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay everyone, here it is. It's a long one (probably one of the longest chapters I have ever written of anything). It's also a bit of a sink or swim moment for this story because I changed my mind about this a few times and how it would happen so we'll see!

Her eyes shot open as a gasp of desperate air mixed with smoke filled her lungs, looking around the now smoldering gym that was strewn with unmoving bodies; not being able to tell whether they belonged to people she cared about or those she was fighting.

She willed herself to sit up slowly, unable to as a sharp pain shoot through her ribs and side, which made every breath seem impossible. Her first instinct was to get up move out of the gym but her body was unable to. Her head was spinning, she thought she was about to throw up and after what she had just been through; she wouldn’t have been blamed. Her ears were blocked and it made everything around her sound like she had been submerged under water; voices calling out seemingly muffled and distorted.

There was a strong metallic taste on her tongue, raising her shaky hand to press her finger to her lower lip gently only to hiss in pain when she felt the sting of a cut ripple through her face. As she pulled her hand away she noticed the deep red moisture that stained her shaking fingers, groaning at the thumping pain she was suddenly feeling in her brain.

Nicole was hit by a flashback, one where the gym had been in tact and everything had been fine before the pep rally started. She remembered seeing the innocent students laughing and smiling until the madness gripped the gym. Weirdly it was the first time Nicole had ever felt like a normal student as she looked over at Waverly who gave her a subtle wink with more nervousness on her face than she would have been willing to admit.

Waverly.

The redhead pushed herself to her knees with a loud groan, wheezing as she failed to inhale the oxygen she needed. She held her ribs tightly with her arm, looking around the eerily still gym; hearing the panicked calls of a few voices on the outside. She wasn’t sure if she was going to find anyone alive inside the gym, she had no idea if anyone was still in there with her so she could only hope that the other woman she was seeking on the outside.

She closed her hand tightly into a fist as any remaining fire was smothered and she willed herself to stand. She couldn’t remember the last time she saw Waverly, she couldn’t remember what had happened but all she felt was a sense of dread that filled her entire body. The dread was coupled with a rage that she needed to unleash, something she hadn’t felt in a very long time and something that was clawing at her insides as she clenched her jaw; struggling to walk towards the exit.

Ironically the fire exit was blocked but there was a door that had been forgotten about behind the charred bleachers that she knew she needed to head towards. She limped and struggled for what felt like hours, every small step causing an immeasurable amount of pain to shoot through her body, centralizing from her side. When she eventually reached the door she moaned in pain when she was forced to give the strongest shove she could manage from her shoulder against it just so it would crack open.

A full moon was out, the stars being the first thing she noticed as she reached the outside as smoke streamed through the door opening before she stumbled to the ground. She felt hands pulling her under her arms, unable to externalize her pain as they kept dragging her backwards away from the danger only to lay her on the grass roughly once they were a safe distance from the smoking building.

Her blurry eyes slowly focused to the person above her, Dolls stood over her with a worried look on his face as it eased steadily once he noticed she was responding to the oxygen stinging inside her lungs. More flashbacks started to roll through her mind of what had just happened, the rage inside her only building for a reason she couldn’t quite put together but could feel it forming in her brain.

Waverly’s name once again echoed through her mind and it was at that moment that everything hit her suddenly and she remembered what had happened just hours before.

**4 Hours Earlier**

Nicole stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom at the Earp Homestead with a frown on her face, as she looked herself up and down. She thought she looked ridiculous in her track uniform for the pep rally, wondering why anyone thought anything that they were about to do was remotely fun or how this would make anyone enthused and encouraged school spirit.

She shook her head disapprovingly, knowing that in just over an hour they would be facing a deadly Bobo Del Rey and his group in a clash that would have ripple effects across the world but there she stood in front of a mirror in her track uniform.

“It’s not that bad, I think you look cute,” She heard Waverly’s voice from the doorway, jumping slightly only to hear a quiet chuckle escape the younger woman’s mouth, “Sorry. I just figure if we’re about to go into something as serious as we’re about to, you might as well know how adorable you look.”

Nicole turned to retort the Waverly but once she laid her eyes on the brunette, she felt as if her ability of speech had somehow been taken away and the air was sucked from her lungs. She had seen Waverly in her cheer uniform a handful of times but every time she did there was a nervousness that shot through her entire body because the brunette was nothing short of stunning. Waverly’s long hair was out and wavy, her white shoes almost as bright as the younger woman’s teeth as she beamed an impossibly sexy smile towards the redhead.

“You okay?” The look of confidence and smile leaving Waverly’s face almost immediately as she stepped towards the other woman, “Nicole?”

“Sorry, you just caught me by surprise,” Nicole cleared her throat as her eyes travelled up and down Waverly’s body slowly feeling a jolt throughout her entire body as the brunette raised an eyebrow in recognition of what had just happened, “I’d complain about what I’m wearing but you’re about to fight Bobo in a cheer skirt that you always look incredible in by the way.”

“Thank you,” Waverly nodded as a small blush covered her cheeks before a soft smile fell over her face, “You really do look so cute though, almost like a real student going to a real pep rally.”

“Almost,” Nicole responded solemnly, the gravity of the pep rally being so close coming down on her quickly, “How are you feeling?”

“Like I’m about to throw up but I’m ready,” Waverly took a step towards Nicole to reach her hand out to the other girl slowly, “If you stay with me, I know we’re going to be fine.”

“I’m not going anywhere and if I do, it will be because you’re with me,” Nicole cringed as she spoke the words but she also knew she had never said anything truer in her life, “I have a bag for us each if we need to leave but hopefully we aren’t going to need them.”

“How are you feeling?” Waverly asked as she stood directly in front of the taller woman with their hands linked and her free hand pressing flatly against Nicole’s upper chest, “And you can be honest.”

“I don’t even know what I’m feeling,” Nicole said with furrowed brows and a shake of her head, “Maybe I’ll have an idea once this is all over. I just hope what we’re doing is a step in the right direction for people to see us as humans and not monsters that they’re scared of and hate blindly.”

“All we can do is stop Bobo before he hurts anyone. The rest of it is out of our control for now,” Waverly spoke with a hushed tone, releasing Nicole’s hand to run her thumb gently over Nicole’s bottom lip, “If we walk away from this tonight, you’re not going anywhere but my side; you know that right?”

“I wouldn’t want to,” Nicole’s smile faltered, the lump in her throat making it difficult to produce any words even though her mind was running quicker than she could comprehend, “I’m glad I came to Purgatory.”

“That can’t be true,” Waverly scoffed gently, her hand moving to behind Nicole’s neck; tangling in strands of red hair “If you didn’t come here then you wouldn’t be in this position right now.”

“Well I’m actually pretty happy with our current position,” Nicole joked, a warmth spreading through her chest as Waverly’s quiet laughter echoed through the otherwise silent room, “Coming here and finding you gave me something to survive for instead of just surviving. This is all really scary but for the first time in a long time, I feel like I have a purpose rather than just running.”

“I’m glad you came to Purgatory too,” Waverly exhaled shakily, her eyes flickering down to Nicole’s lips as they ghosted over her own, “Can we just stay here?”

“We probably could for a little while.” Nicole nodded with her voice just above a whisper before bridging the small gap between their lips and kissing Waverly tenderly. She felt the brunette smile against her lips subtly before the fingers tangled in her hair stiffened around Nicole’s red locks.

“I wish we could just stay here and do this all afternoon,” Waverly muttered against Nicole’s lips as they separated momentarily, “I wish we’d met under different circumstances.”

“That’s our story now,” Nicole responded with a shrug, feeling an overwhelming need to wrap her arms around the smaller woman and protect her from whatever they were about to face them knowing that Waverly needed no protection. She also knew that the only way out of the situation was to walk straight through it rather than trying to avoid it, “But I do wish we could have a little more time.”

The brunette only nodded before connecting their lips and their kiss continued feverishly at a high speed. Pent up emotions and tensions poured from their bodies, trying to express every feeling within an instant. The door closed quietly, Nicole felt Waverly’s hand leave her chest momentarily and knew it was the younger girl who closed it with her abilities, which only reminded the redhead of the power within the brunette. She quickly brought her hands to grip Waverly’s waist only to spin their bodies and reverse their positions so the smaller girl was pressed up against the bathroom sink.

It was as if Waverly read her mind as Nicole’s hand drifted towards the back of her knee to pick her up onto the sink but the brunette moved there on her own accord; wrapping her legs tightly around the taller woman’s waist and only bringing their bodies closer. A soft hum of satisfaction left Waverly’s mouth as her tongue peaked out to meet Nicole’s hungry lips whilst they found themselves being lost in need and desperation.

They were so consumed with each other that they didn’t notice the footsteps approaching them as they creaked up the stairs only stopping to notice the bathroom door was closed.

“Waves, are you in the bathroom?” Wynonna called paired with loud knocking against the bathroom door, “Have you seen red?”

“I’ll be out in a second,” Waverly called once she separated from Nicole’s lips, eyeing the door wearily before her gaze returned to the flustered redhead pressed against her body, “I think Nicole went to get something from her car.”

“Are you almost ready?” Wynonna questioned suspiciously and impatiently, “We need to go soon.”

“Yeah, okay,” Waverly called quietly, the husk in her voice making way for a rawness when she continued to speak, “I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

“If you’re having second thoughts, that’s okay,” Wynonna paused with a loud sigh, tapping lightly against the door, “If you want to go, we can make that happen and it won’t be a big deal.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Waverly responded without a moments hesitation as her eyes stayed glued to door, “I’ll be out in a few minutes, okay?”

“Okay, baby girl,” Wynonna’s voice was thick as she mumbled, hesitating at the door before she spoke again, “We’re going to be okay, this is going to work.”

“I know.”

With footsteps rushing down the stairs, Nicole and Waverly were brought tumbling back to earth once more. Nicole swallowed thickly, pressing one last soft kiss on Waverly’s lips before taking a step backwards to hold out her hands to help the smaller woman down from her place on the sink. They quickly straightened themselves out, longing expressions on their faces of what could have been soon transformed into looks of determination at what they knew they needed to focus on.

The group moved through their plan once more after the two girls emerged from upstairs; no one bothering to question where they had both been since Wynonna went to find her sister. Dolls, Doc, Wynonna, Waverly and Nicole all stood around the Earp kitchen table with weapons and a map in the center that commanded their focus. There was a silence that filled the room once Dolls finished moving through details on what was about to happen as the thick tension became almost deafening.

Nicole and Waverly drove to the pep rally together, both women looking at each other wordlessly as they rolled to a stop in the parking lot of Purgatory high as students began to stream into the area. Nicole was thankful that she hadn’t eaten much that morning because if she had, she was completely convinced that it would have been on her shoes at that stage. Waverly placed her hand on Nicole’s twitching knee with her eyes on the gym, already noting that there were more students in the school than they had been expecting.

“I’ve got to go meet the squad but I’ll see you in there,” Waverly spoke bravely but her voice gave away the nerves that Nicole knew were coursing through her body, “Will you try and stay close to me when we’re inside? I just…I’d feel better if you were.”

“I’ll stay as close as I can,” Nicole promised with a nod, placing a hand over Waverly’s, “I trust you, okay? Whatever happens, I trust you.”

“I know how hard that is for you.” Waverly responded with a nod, a sad but honest smile on her face when she leaned over to place a lingering kiss on Nicole’s cheek. As if Nicole had been in fast forward, Waverly was out of her car and on her way towards the gym before the redhead could even comprehend what had happened.

She stared at the empty spot that the other woman had been occupying just seconds ago, clenching her fists as she fought every single one of her instincts to turn around and leave. It wasn’t that she doubted their plan and it wasn’t that she didn’t think they could beat Bobo but it was what would happen after that worried her. She had spent so long running and she had become very good at it that she knew that if she wanted to; she could leave again without any warning. She wasn’t going to though, her feet were firmly set in purgatory for that moment and she knew that something had to give; something was going to happen that day and she would be forced to face the consequences whether they be for better or for worse.

Bobo Del Rey needed to be stopped, he needed to be ended and if Nicole could help bring him down and save innocent lives then she would risk it all to do so. She never thought she would find herself in a situation like that; she wasn’t one to abandon those in need but she also had been taught a long time ago not to go out of your way to aid a cause that was lost before it even gained momentum. She would do her part and could only hope that a man she didn’t even know kept his word in protecting them once Moody had been taken care of.

What she was walking into was a war and she made no mistakes about it recognizing their situation for what it was. The battle lines had been drawn a while ago, two ideals were going to be entering that gym and only one would leave. Nicole was confident in who she was about to be standing side by side with but worried for Waverly that Bobo might try to get into her head as a way to throw her off and disrupt her abilities; which would be the only way for him to win.

There was every chance that Waverly could lose control, that she could spark something that she had no intention of doing so and even though Nicole knew the brunette wouldn’t try to do more than she thought capable; she knew there was always a risk of overuse.

Her phone beeped, causing the redhead to jump in her place; indicating that it was time for her to move inside with the pep rally only minutes away from starting. The sickness in her stomach only grew as she stepped out of her car; exhaling deeply before taking steps towards the gym.

The students were buzzing, the excitement lost on Nicole even if she didn’t know what was about to happen. She had never lived a normal life; she wasn’t quite sure she ever would and she was even less convinced that she’d want one given the opportunity but things like a pep rally didn’t make a lot of sense to her. Nicole spotted Wynonna first, giving the Earp sister a brief nod before setting foot inside the loud, spirit filled gymnasium. Her hands buzzed as if they were begging to be set alight, ready to defend themselves when the time came.

The lights dimmed as Nicole gathered around the basketball court with her track and field team, her eyes catching Waverly as she and her squad waiting just outside the doors. It was bizarre to know that Waverly was about to start her routine amongst the level of danger they were in but they were playing by Bobo’s rules for that moment and needed to wait for him to come in on his own time. The music started blaring throughout the gym and the small community of Purgatory roared loudly as the cheerleading squad was lead inside by Waverly who started off their routine immediately. The redhead would have been lying if she said she wasn’t completely distracted by the youngest Earp’s confidence and dancing abilities.

She had to blink a few times to tear her eyes from the younger girl, noting in her mind that she hoped she lived to see another performance just like what was happening in front of her. The music stopped suddenly, the echo of the last beat filling the last room as Nicole’s heart sunk when Waverly’s worried eyes met her own. The dimmed lights cut out, worried chatter filling the gym as darkness engulfed the room; the sound of doors slamming indicated that Bobo had made his move through the darkness.

Nicole’s heart on raced faster as panic began to fill the gym, knowing the longer the lights were out; the more fearsome Bobo would become to those inside. She quickly moved through the darkness as her eyes adjusted towards Waverly’s last position, the brunette finding her before she laid eyes on the youngest Earp. Waverly squeezed her hand tightly as the darkness lifted and a smug looking Bobo Del Rey appeared in the place of the Principal who had been making announcements, the school administrator lying motionless on the floor.

“Who has school spirit?” Bobo asked with a grin as he stood at the podium, bringing nothing but confusion into the room as everyone watched on with wide eyes, “I know you can do better than that, why is no one saying anything?”

You could hear a pin drop in the room as every single person watched on in shock with the principal laid out on the floor and a smirking Bobo Del Rey in front of them. Everyone knew who he was and if they didn’t know who he was, they had heard of him being the one who terrorized the town in a way that no one wanted to talk about.

“Maybe I need to bring something out that’s going to make you all a little talkative,” Bobo moved to nod in the direction of the door, the eyes of the full gym as Sherriff Nedley was dragged by the shirt collar by one of Bobo’s group until the he was laying at Bobo’s feet, “Did that wake everyone up?”

Nicole stiffened immediately as she saw Nedley’s condition, noticing that he was just as bloody as he had been the last time they had found him. Bobo clearly seeing the value in the Sherriff of the town and taking him once more just to show the people of Purgatory that they were powerless to stop it. Bobo moved from the podium, stepping in front of Nedley as the Sherriff gripped the other man’s shoes to try and pull himself up only to be shaken off with amusement.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Chrissy Nedley take a step towards her father only to see her body completely freeze and noticed Waverly’s free hand by her side; knowing that Chrissy would have been slaughtered first for going to her dad. Waverly watched with teeth gritted, swallowing thickly as her eyes met Nicole only for the redhead to shake her head slowly, indicating that it was too early to move.

“We have sat back and watched people we love being taken away for being born differently. We’ve watched them being punished and executed one by one all because humans like your Sherriff here were too scared of us to stop what was happening,” Bobo’s mood suddenly turned sour as Nedley attempted to stand slowly, “You all have just stood by while we suffered, forcing us to make the choice of hide or die. You turn away because it’s too hard to watch instead of stepping out and stopping this from happening.”

Panic set in suddenly inside of the gym as they realized how serious the situation had escalated to as they watched the members of Bobo’s group that were inside the gym step forward. Nicole knew the situation was quickly heightening and they’d need to make a move as soon as they could without harming any of the people inside.

“These people you used to call your friends or your family, the people you condemn because you’re afraid of something different. This has gone on far too long though and we think it’s time for a change, change, change,” Bobo muttered with a smirk as his fingers wiggled in front of him at his last words, “For too long we have been scared of humans when those of us with abilities should be treated like God’s. After today, humans are going to fall at our feet when they see exactly what we have the power to do and I have you all to thank for that.”

Nicole was pulled away from Bobo’s words when she felt a tugging on her hand from Waverly who was looking to the doors of the gym with concern. The hand holding Chrissy in place dropped but curiously she didn’t take a step further towards her still struggling father. Nicole furrowed her eyebrows as her eyes found Wynonna who was watching the door of the gym anxiously as if she was waiting for something. Nicole caught onto the fact very quickly that there was something else going on but from Waverly’s reaction, she wasn’t sure whether it had been explained to the woman next to her either.

“Waverly.” Nicole muttered under her breath, her tone confused as Bobo continued talking.

“I don’t get it…” Waverly mumbled in return as she focused on the door, “Wynonna didn’t say anything.”

“Didn’t say anything about what?” Nicole asked without trying to gather much attention from Bobo, “What’s going on?”

“Wynonna?” Waverly called loudly, interrupting Bobo’s speech as he glanced back to the small brunette only for his eyes to land on her elder sister.

“Wynonna Earp?” Bobo’s smile only grew before he pushed Nedly onto his back with his foot, “I hoped you’d be here for this changing of the guard and I’ll let you live if you start using peacemaker.”

“That’s not how it works, Bobo and you know it,” Wynonna emerged from the side of the bleachers with Peacemaker at her side, “Let Nedley go and I won’t have to use peacemaker at all.”

“We both know that only one of us is going to walk out of this gym,” Bobo replied with a shrug, looking up to the bleachers with a loud sigh before he moved to stand over Nedley, “I’m thinking shooting him with his own gun, that would be kind of poetic don’t you think? One by one these people are going to learn what it’s like for us and I don’t know why you insist on protecting them.”

“You’re only making things worse,” Waverly called, trying to distract Bobo from her sister as she released Nicole’s hand reluctantly to take a step towards him, “All you are doing is putting a target on your back.”

“She speaks again,” Bobo raised his hand in the air as Nedley’s gun pulled itself from its holster and began to rise, “Sweetheart, I know exactly what I’m doing but I’m not totally sure you do though.”

“Enough,” Waverly spoke with gritted teeth, holding her hand out towards Bobo which managed to stop his movements, “This is your last chance. Leave here now or you’re not going to at all.”

“I have to say, I’m impressed by your little trick but you don’t have it in you to stop everyone in this room from being hurt,” Bobo growled angrily as he looked around the room, gesturing to the bleachers, “You can’t control yourself, Waverly and you shouldn’t have to. You shouldn’t have to play by their rules when you’re as powerful as us.”

“No one is getting hurt, well besides you,” Wynonna replied as they heard a door slam, echoing through the gym which caught everyone’s attention. The next thing they heard was Peacemaker loading not so subtly before it was pointed towards Bobo, “I guess now is a good time as any, Gretta.”

Nicole felt the familiar feeling of being sucked back into what she now realized was reality. Wynonna stood behind Bobo with Peacemaker pressed to the base of his neck with Doc and Dolls inside the gym with their weapons pointed towards the unstable powered individual but most noticeably; the gym was almost completely empty of people including Sheriff Nedley who had been on the floor only moments ago.

The redhead’s eyes widened as she saw Gretta standing near the door with her hands on her knees in exhaustion as reality hit Bobo and his group. They had been completely fooled and distracted to the point that Wynonna was able to sneak the people inside the gym out to safety all under Bobo’s nose as he simply believed the reality he was in. To say Nicole was shocked was an understatement and she now she understood why Waverly had released her hold over Chrissy whilst watching her sister carefully but it didn’t look like the youngest Earp knew anymore than the redhead.

Her hand produced a flame instantly, knowing there was no time but the present to be involved as she looked at an enraged Bobo Del Rey; looking around the room to look for his group but only finding that they were nowhere to be seen. There was shouting outside, as the doors rattled loudly with his people trying to help their leader who was trapped on the inside and completely ignoring those who had just been evacuated.

“Baby girl, I’m going to need you to hold those doors for me,” Wynonna spoke to her sister as she kept her eyes on Bobo, “At least until I can pull the trigger.”

“You’ve all made a big mistake here,” Bobo spoke through gritted teeth, shaking with rage, “I didn’t want to have to bring this down upon you but I will now that you’ve stopped the one chance we had for these people to see us for what we really are.”

“What they would have seen us as would have been a bigger threat that they needed to exterminate quickly,” Wynonna disagreed as she glanced to her sister who only had concentration on her face before her eyes landed on Nicole who was watching the situation with slight confusion, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Gretta, I knew Waves would pick it up but he can read you and I needed a genuine reaction. She only came to me last night and we decided to make a bigger play.”

“It worked,” Nicole said with a small shrug, placing her free hand at the small of Waverly’s back so the youngest Earp could physically feel that the redhead was right next to her through her concentration, “But now what?”

“Now we get rid of Bobo, let his little gang in and take care of them too,” Wynonna looked to Bobo, the barrel of the gun still tightly against his skin, “Then Black Badge are going to know what we did and we’re going to gain some of our freedom back for doing them a favor.”

“You really think that they’re going to give you freedom after this?” Bobo exasperated, his fists clenching beside him, “What they’re going to do is shorten that leash even more because they’re not going to have someone like me to scare the hell out of them. They control you like little puppets but they know they can’t touch me and it’s the only reason why Purgatory isn’t over run but those suits. If you kill me, then you might as well wave goodbye to your sister and you’ll definitely have to say goodbye to red over here because they haven’t met her yet but when they do, they’ll take her.”

“No one is going to take anyone,” Wynonna spoke strongly, looking to Nicole once more with a shake of her head, “We’re not letting anything happen to anyone.”

Nicole knew that there had to be some element of truth in Bobo’s words, knowing that whilst he was completely crazy; he told what was his truth and he told it with conviction. Something shifted inside Nicole almost instantly as she watched the scene play out in front of her knowing that he could have been right and they could have been setting themselves up for failure with him gone because in some sick way; it was like his presence did protect them from too much interference.

She swallowed thickly as Wynonna cocked Peacemaker, her heart racing faster than she ever thought possible as the banging on the doors only grew louder. Waverly’s eyebrows crinkled with her hands facing out towards the doors, becoming increasingly aware that they were now using their abilities to try and get inside. Whilst Nicole knew that it might have been to her own detriment in the end; she also knew that this could have been a chance for Waverly to break free from some of the chains she had been held in for a majority of her life. If Wynonna thought they were going to have a chance at freedom for stopping what they had and that the younger girl was going to benefit from it then she would stick to the plan. The switch inside of her had been from self preservation to self sacrifice if necessary; fighting all of her instincts to move away from the situation and keeping her feet firmly planted on the floor next to the woman she was falling for quickly.

“Any last words, Bobo Del Rey?” Wynonna uttered bitterly, “Before I tell you to make your peace? Maybe you want to apologize for having our father killed or for terrorizing us all this time?”

“All I wanted was for Waverly to see her true potential instead of holding doors closed,” Bobo snapped angrily, “She could kill all of you with a blink if she wanted to but you’ve held her back, you’ve stunted her growth and that’s the biggest shame here.”

“Shut up.” Wynonna pulled the trigger against the back of Bobo’s neck, silence echoing the room following the action as the group stood stunned.

Peacemaker hadn’t fired.

Wynonna stood dumbfounded, whilst Bobo’s smirk only grew as she tried to fire her gun once more only for it to jam again; peacemaker making the decision that Bobo wasn’t her rival after all. Only silence filled the room before a deep and dark laughter echoed through the room as Bobo shook with amusement. Wynonna quickly turned peacemaker, hitting Bobo across the face with the butt of the gun to bring him to his knees painfully.

“Wynonna…” Doc spoke cautiously as he took a step forward, “Peacemaker has made its decision, so now what do we do?”

“How is he not my rival?!” Wynonna called as she kicked Bobo to have him laid out flat on the floor below her as she turned to look at her weapon, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“They’re trying pretty hard to get in here,” Waverly broke the current conversation as the tension began to build both inside and outside of the gym, “I can’t hold them off forever.”

“Can you hold Bobo?” Wynonna asked her sister as plans quickly changed inside of her mind.

“What about the doors?” Waverly’s concentration broke as everyone’s attentions quickly turned to the shaking entrances of the gym.

“Let them in, we’ll take care of them and shut the doors,” Wynonna said with a deep breath as she looked around the small group with a nod, “We can do this. We stop them however we have to and then we figure out what to do with Bobo.”

“There’s too many of them with Waverly holding Bobo,” Dolls shook his head, urging his friend when he looked to see a slow moving Bobo Del Rey, “I don’t know if we can hold them off.”

“We have to try,” Wynonna said with a shrug, “I think we have to try.”

“Let them in.” Nicole said with a nod, giving Waverly a look of reassurance before stepping away from the brunette and allowing flames to course through both of her hands.

Waverly exhaled deeply, dropping her hands to her sides until her concentration shifted to Bobo; pressing him as tightly to the ground as she could manage. The doors burst open and they found themselves under attack from both sides of the gym. Dolls stood with Wynonna, Doc paying attention to the same side as Nicole when a strong wind blew inside of the building; almost knocking everyone off the feet.

A powered individual that Nicole had never seen before entered with the group, holding her hand up to the air as the wind continued to wreak havoc inside the gymnasium so the redhead decided she would take action. She brought her hands back into herself before tensing her body, pushing out a strong ball of fire towards the woman responsible for the gale force wind to find her blown against the wall in a blaze.

All hell broke loose as Nicole took the first shot as it seemingly only made things worse but the breakdown was always going to happen no matter who fired. The flames hit the wall of the gym until the redhead closed her fist to extinguish them on the other side of the room. Nicole looked back to the other side of the room to see Wynonna and Dolls with their hands full; Peacemaker being knocked from Wynonna’s hand almost immediately by the woman who could multiply herself. Nicole had her own troubles to deal with once she turned her attention to what was in front of her, seeing a wall of ice being produced from a man she had never seen before; someone whom she guessed was a new member of Bobo’s group.

The ice was shooting for Waverly who held her concentration on Bobo like she had been asked, so without any hesitation; Nicole decided to really make it an even battle and hoped Doc would be able to hold off anyone else who might come for her. She braced herself with her weight on her back leg and both of her hands facing palm out towards the man aiming directly for Waverly, sending a stream of fire to match his ice. As their abilities connected it sent a shockwave throughout Nicole’s body and she had hoped that she was strong enough to match him because she would face some serious consequences if she weren’t.

She shut her eyes tightly, feeling a tightness in her chest arise as she pulled whatever strength from her body that she could to force the man backwards. She started to feel him weakening as her abilities only began to grow, shuffling her feet forwards as the battle of fire and ice continued. She had never faced someone with abilities like his; she had never really faced another powered individual in such a serious situation like this so it was trying. She could hear commotion on the other side of the room but couldn’t afford to drop her attention for one moment because she knew if she did then it could be enough for her to suffer a painful defeat.

Nicole pushed harder, using her extra motivation of needing to stay close to Waverly as strength to further turn the tide of the battle in her favor.

“Gretta, we could really use some help!” Wynonna called loudly from the other side of the gym but gaining no response from the other woman.

“I think we pushed her enough.” Dolls responded loudly as shots began to echo through the gym.

Nicole gritted her teeth, taking two further steps forward until she pushed the man she had been battling back against the wall. She used one last surge of strength to send a strong pulse of fire through her hands towards him and pushing his abilities back until he had succumb to the flames running through Nicole’s veins. He screamed loudly as Nicole watched him momentarily before extinguishing the flames, leaving him motionless and slumped against the wall as he still shouldered.

“Nicole!” She heard Waverly’s voice cry, turning her head to see the powered individual she had encountered at the homestead hurling towards her with his arms shaped like large spears. She put her hand out to produce a flame that she knew would be too weak only to feel metallic shavings sting her exposed skin; watching him disintegrate in front of her. She turned to see Waverly with her hand out towards Nicole, a determined look on her face as she placed a wall of protection around the redhead.

She was speechless knowing that Waverly had saved her life but looked wide eyed at Bobo who quickly stood behind Waverly. In the blink of an eye, he pulled metal from the bleachers, sending a sharp pipe directly into Gretta’s chest as she stood in the corner of the room; the pole hitting her clean and pinning her against the wall.

“If you are all so hell bent on defending these people and killing mine then you’re going to have to play by my rules now,” Bobo yelled loudly as he looked to Waverly who quickly turned her attention back to him with her hand up towards him, “If you even so much as think about touching me again, I will bring this gym down on top of us and we’ll see how strong you really are, Waverly. I gave you a chance and now I’m fresh out of them.”

“You’d kill yourself too.” Wynonna reasoned with Bobo shakily as she pulled herself up from the ground, Peacemaker out of her hands on the floor.

“We’re all dead now anyway so what does it matter,” Bobo spat angrily with a shake of his head, “It seems that even Peacemaker could see that I’m not the enemy. Those people you saved outside, those so called innocent people are though.”

“Peacemaker doesn’t make my decisions for me.”

“Pick it up.” Bobo commanded the woman who had formed a literal circle around Wynonna; suddenly 6 bodies transforming into one as she reached for peacemaker.

“I wouldn’t do that,” Wynonna shook her head, catching the woman’s eyes who gave her a doubtful look, “But hey, what do I know right?”

She bent down to pick it up, a cry of pain leaving her mouth as her fingers touched the weapon and leaping back as far as she could manage away from Peacemaker. Wynonna stood smugly, wiping her bleeding lip as she looked back to Bobo with a shrug.

“Peacemaker hates anyone else touching him.”

Bobo growled as he failed to summon it with his hand, trying to coax the weapon in front of him. Another quick movement saw the same objects that killed Gretta so instantly fly towards both Wynonna and Nicole until it stopped at the base of their chests; Nicole looking down to see the sharp pole had pierced her skin enough to produce an instant but small trail of blood down the front of her shirt.

“No more games.” Bobo snapped angrily as his attention turned to Waverly and only the youngest Earp.

Nicole swallowed thickly as she watched her blood drip onto the floor below her from her shirt, her eyes glancing to Wynonna who hadn’t been harmed yet. The elder Earp gave her a nod of reassurance as she looked around the room; closing her eyes tightly and expelling a deep exhale as if accepting whatever was to come.

“Now you have to choose and you can only save one so it’s time to see where your loyalties are, Waverly,” Bobo spoke with a wicked smirk, Waverly’s helpless eyes moving between Wynonna and Nicole who met her gaze with intensity, “They’re probably both going to die but you have the chance to at least save one from meeting the same fate as your new friend Gretta over there.”

“Drop it, Bobo.” Waverly warned angrily, her chest rising and falling quickly but her voice faltered; giving away the fear that was running through her mind, “I’ll kill you if I have to.”

“This new, gay Waverly is feisty,” He smirked, pushing Waverly further knowing she would bite, “But let’s see whether you’re going to choose your sister or your new love. One has to die so you might as well make it easy on me and make the decision.”

“Baby girl, just pick me if you have to,” Wynonna called shakily as she looked towards her sister, “After all of this…after my plan didn’t work, I deserve it.”

“You’re not going to pick,” Nicole called loudly, her voice echoing loudly throughout the room. She began to grow increasingly uncomfortable feeling the heat and pain from the floating would be kabob pressing in the front of her chest, “You’re not going to give him what he wants.”

“I don’t think she has a choice here.” Bobo interrupted angrily, “Waverly, I need a name.”

“Don’t you even utter a word,” Nicole responded as her eyes met the brunette’s, “You can stop him, I know you can. You don’t need to listen to him, you don’t need to listen to me but you know you can do this. You know how much power you have and you might think you don’t know how to harness it but I promise that you do.”

“If I wasn’t about to kill you all, I might like you,” Bobo said with a sigh as he lifted his fingers slightly to only increase the pressure on Nicole’s body; earning a grunt of pain from the redhead, “You’ve got spunk, kid.”

“Baby, you can do this,” Nicole urged her through gritted teeth, “I know you can do this.”

She felt an instant relief as a loud clattering echo filled the silence, the poles bouncing on the floor in front of them as the dropped to the ground whilst Bobo lifted from the floor with his arms pushed into his sides. The look of shock on his face reflected everyone’s reaction in the room besides Nicole who stood not only in awe but relief as she placed her hand on her chest before moving quickly to Waverly’s side. Wyonna picked up Peacemaker, firing a shot into the chest of the woman who had tried to pick it up before aiming at Bobo only to hear the click of it jamming yet again.

Waverly held both of her hands up as the remaining few members of Bobo’s group that were still standing began to float just above the ground with their arms each tucked into their sides. Nicole could see the tension in Waverly’s face, looking at Bobo with a clenched jaw and a rapidly rising and falling chest which set off a few alarm bells in Nicole’s mind. She could see the younger woman’s hand shaking as she held them in the air, her hands clenching into a fist suddenly, hearing the collective gasps of those whom she had control over as she began to cut off their air supply slowly.

Wynonna, Doc, Dolls and Nicole watched on as Waverly lifted them higher in the air; struggling more and more for air they were so desperately trying to inhale. She saw the same metal poles that had been threatening her sister and her girlfriend rise from the ground slowly in front of Bobo himself who was powerless to do anything to stop the small woman.

“Waverly, you can put them down,” Dolls said calmly with a nod, “Perry is on the way, there are people everywhere outside and we need to prove that we’re the good guys here. It’s very important that they get Bobo alive after all of this.”

Waverly didn’t respond as it looked like her eyes almost darkened, her lip pulling into a scowl whilst she looked upon the man who had been responsible for her fathers death. Nicole swallowed thickly, taking a slow but deliberate step towards Waverly who held everyone in place steadily. Wynonna shot a questioning but weary glance to Nicole; searching what she was about to do and the redhead could only nod in confidence as she slowly inched her way to the woman she cared so deeply for.

She exhaled deeply, knowing that Waverly would never intentionally hurt her but also knowing that the brunette was sucked into a place that she wanted to avoid but was only encouraged to enter by Nicole. She placed a hand on Waverly’s waist gently, finding herself be pushed away almost instantly as she slid across the ground and hitting the wall with a thud. It was clear that through the haze, she knew not to harm Nicole but she also didn’t want to hear what the redhead had to say.

Nicole couldn’t help but feel a guilty pang in her whole body as she pushed herself up to her feet slowly. She knew that once Waverly gained control over herself that she would feel awful for what she had done but Nicole knew she needed to calm the younger woman as power flowed through her body; knowing that Waverly had still only just touched the tip of her abilities. The walls of the gym began to shake slowly, as if building towards a complete collapse as Nicole watched on with wide eyes as Waverly’s feet lifted a couple of inches from the ground. She heard Wynonna call her sisters name but it was as if she had been submerged underwater, unable to hear anything around her; only able to concentrate on Waverly. She didn’t hesitate as the shaking of the walls only increased in force as those whom Waverly was holding gasped for a desperate breath, moving forward to the brunette once more.

This time she stood directly in front of Waverly as they stood nose to nose, Nicole cupping Waverly’s face with her hands gently as she searched her vacant yet vengeful eyes for any sign of the brunette she knew but she didn’t have to look far. Shattered glass showered over them as the high windows blew out above them causing the redhead to shield Waverly’s head from the hazards falling from above until she realized the younger woman was protecting those around her when the glass turned into nothing but sand as it fell to the floor.

“Waves, you know you can control this,” Nicole whispered softly but surely in front of the other girl as their eyes connected once more until the redhead placed a soft kiss to Waverly’s waiting lips and only pulling away to speak quietly again, “Come on baby, you’ve done more than enough.”

As Nicole finished her sentence the walls stilled, Waverly’s feet touched the ground and she expelled a shaky breath as her eyes closed and opened; glassy with unshed tears of anger and relief when they landed on the redhead who stood directly in front of her. The look in Waverly’s eyes sent a lightning bolt of emotion shooting down Nicole’s spine as the intensity of her gaze captured her so much that she didn’t even hear the doors being kicked in. She didn’t even hear the screams and shouts of Black Badge agents as they rushed into the room until she was surrounded and hit harshly in back; falling to the ground involuntarily as pain crippled her momentarily as a man whom she recognized as an agent that stormed into the homestead the day she had barely escaped stood over her.

They didn’t touch Waverly, Nicole feeling relieved as she saw the brunette be left untouched but knowing she was in more danger than she had ever been before in her life.

“Does someone want to tell me what the hell has happened here?” The man standing over Nicole yelled angrily, “Why did we think it was a good idea to try and stop Bobo Del Rey without telling me anything about it? Why do I have terrified civilians outside of this gym and why has this turf war all of a sudden become public?”

“This wasn’t a turf war, sir,” Dolls spoke as he was forced to his knees with his hands behind his head just like Doc and Wynonna were moments after, “Bobo’s plan was to kill everyone inside this gym at the pep rally because he wanted to prove a point. We stopped him and we saved every single innocent soul in this gym without anyone being harmed.”

“Care to explain why someone is dead then?”

“Gretta worked with us, she was powered.” Dolls answered quickly before being cut off by Moody.

“I don’t give a damn about her, she was on our list anyway,” Moody spoke and his words sent a ripple of fear through Nicole’s body, knowing that the lives of the people in that gym had never been more at risk than they had been at that moment. It clicked with her almost instantly that Peacemaker didn’t interpret Bobo as the enemy but she would bet her life that the gun would fire when it was pointed at agent Moody, “I mean why is the school principal dead on the floor and why is the Sherriff outside injured again? Why is this place such a mess and how did you manage to cause this much damage in here?”

“Bobo was going to do a lot more damage than that if we hadn’t stopped him,” Wynonna spoke slowly, her tone low and serious but her eyes searched for any sign of Perry inside the room, “We couldn’t tell you what was happening because we knew that you wouldn’t have wanted to work with us on this. We had to stop Bobo and we knew we had the ability to do it so we did.”

Moody moved his attention to Bobo who lay on the floor on the other side of the room, seemingly unconscious but there was no way anyone could tell without getting close to him. Moody signaled for two of his agents to approach Bobo, aiming their weapons at the unmoving man to find him giving no resistance as they cuffed him with zip ties roughly without invoking any kind of reaction. The agents moved to the powered individuals in the room, those members of Bobo’s who were still alive were taken into custody and out of the gym as Nicole watched the rough treatment that was being afforded to people just like her. She had a sick feeling in her stomach, knowing how much danger she was in if Perry wasn’t in the room or the picture for that moment and wondering whether putting people away who were just like her was actually worth it.

Two agents moved to Nicole, pulling her to her knees roughly and placing her hands behind her back. She shut her eyes tightly; exhaling shakily as she winced in pain from the treatment she was receiving but freezing once she heard Waverly’s voice.

“No, leave her!” Waverly called angrily as she stood untouched, “She’s not with him, she’s with us.”

“So you lied to me then?” Moody asked with raised eyebrows, his lip curling back into a scowl, “You used your abilities against me and lied to me.”

“We knew she was going to help us and she did,” Wynonna jumped to her sisters defense, “Nicole is extremely useful to us and she’d be way more useful to you with us than she would be anywhere else.”

“You protected her even though you knew what would happen if you were caught?” Moody questioned with a dark chuckle and a shake of his head, “Waverly, I thought you were smarter than that.”

“I made her do it,” Nicole interjected loudly, trying to draw Moody’s attention and she did, “I made her keep me a secret and I made her lie to you. No one in this room wanted to do it but I made them.”

“Everyone, out of this room.” Moody seethed as he looked around at his agents but shaking his head as a pale, bald man gave him a questioning look. She gathered quickly that the powered individual that Waverly had told her all about was the man that Moody shook his head to; proving how scared the Agent was of people like them but she wanted to know why.

The room cleared out quickly, the door closing with a thud until it was just Wynonna, Doc, Dolls, Waverly, Nicole, Moody and the powered Black Badge agent next to him. A tense silence filled the room as Moody paced in a small line, his hands running over his hair before stopping to look at Dolls.

“I give you this case, I take you under my wing for you to be planning all of this under my nose?” Moody questioned angrily, “You take their side over your own?”

“There are no sides here, Moody,” Doc snapped out of turn, “We protected these people in this room tonight, we saved hundreds of lives.”

“Dolls?” Moody yelled, ignoring Doc’s comments as he continued to press his agent.

“They’re not like Bobo, they’re good people,” Dolls responded to Moody’s comments with a shake of his head, “All they did was protect every person in this town.”

“Which is really interesting coming from a man who planned to stab me in the back with Perry.”

Nicole’s blood ran cold, her eyes widened as she looked around the group to see everyone having a similar reaction. Dolls couldn’t help the surprise that covered his face, the agent next to Moody smirking before laughter left his lips.

“I don’t have a lot of time to waste and you’re like family to me Dolls so you’re going to get another chance,” Moody said with a nod, folding his arms over his chest, “I have to clean up the mess that you’ve allowed these people to make but I need to prove to you and to everyone here that actions have consequences. When you make such drastic actions, you face drastic consequences and I want these to be loud and clear for anyone who ever thinks that they’re bigger or more powerful than Black Badge.”

“Agent Moody, we were only trying to help.” Waverly spoke out of turn, her eyes firmly set on Nicole.

“What you were trying to do was help yourselves by removing me from the picture amongst other things,” Moody shook with his head as he drew his weapon out of his holster, cocking his gun before pointing it directly at Nicole who was kneeling in front of him.

Her hands fingers twitched beside her, knowing she could take action against Moody and probably kill him but with so many Black Badge Agents outside in earshot, she knew everyone else in the gym would be held responsible and killed regardless. She stopped the movement of her fingers, balling her hands into a fist and seemingly accepted her fate as her eyes stayed on Waverly’s and wouldn’t stray.

“Moody, we can talk about this,” Wynonna warned through gritted teeth, “You don’t need to do that.”

“But if I don’t, you’re going to think you can do whatever you want.” Moody flipped his gun, hitting Nicole in the face swiftly. Her lip split instantly as the metalic taste of blood filled her mouth, her ears rang like a loud bell was tolling inside her brain and momentarily she wasn’t completely sure where she was. She heard Waverly scream loudly in pain, her eyes shutting tightly; knowing the powered agent was pushing into the younger woman’s brain after losing her strength to fight him off. She turned onto her stomach to try and push herself up to her knees once more when she heard a gun shot echo loudly through her ears.

She heard her name being screamed by a few different voices, hearing Dolls’ name called soon after until everything faded into nothing. She didn’t feel peace, she didn’t feel pain; she just felt empty and hollow.

**Present Time**

“I’m glad to see my shot just grazed your side like I meant it to,” Dolls said looking to the redhead’s wounds as he slowly and gently pulled Nicole into a sitting position, look at her with sympathetic eyes, “I guess Black Badge didn’t know you can’t get burnt by fire.”

“You shot me?” Nicole rasped, struggling to breathe oxygen into her lungs and talk at the same time. She looked down to her side, seeing her shirt cut and bloodstained where her pain was radiating from, “Where is Waverly? Is she okay?”

“I shot you because I was going to miss you unlike Moody who would have killed you,” Dolls said with a shake of his head, “Do you think you can walk?”

“I don’t know,” Nicole said with furrowed brows as she looked up at the charred remains of the gym, her eyes widening, “What happened?”

“I’ll tell you on the way, we need to get to the homestead to patch you up and go,” Dolls held out his hand for Nicole who took it but struggled to help herself up. A paramedic approached her but Dolls quickly told them to leave, flashing his badge before pulling the redhead to her feet forcefully. She gasped in pain as it shot through her entire body, Dolls pulling Nicole’s arm around his shoulder and taking her weight as they moved towards his car.

Once she was in and he had buckled her up he began to drive away from Purgatory high as quickly as he could manage. Nicole swallowed thickly; shutting her eyes tightly as the pain in her body slowly began to subside besides her visible injuries as she looked down to her body that was covered in ash and dirt. She placed her hand on her side, wincing at the pain and noticing the dried blood over her shirt before pushing it up slightly to see where Dolls had supposedly grazed a bullet over her intentionally.

“Where is Waverly, you didn’t answer me,” Nicole said through gritted teeth, exhaling through he pain, “What the hell happened?”

“I took out my gun and shot at you because I knew Moody would kill you. You went down in shock and you stayed there while the guy with Moody pried into Waverly’s mind so she couldn’t do anything to help you. I didn’t want to shoot you but Moody said he was going to give me another chance so I needed it to look like I was loyal to him. She was too weak to stop him so she was basically rendered useless until they took her out of the gym,” Dolls said seriously, his voice low as he repeatedly looked in the rear view mirror, “Moody told me to take Doc and Wynonna home, he wanted her to live with the fact that you were dead and that Waverly had been captured. He was teaching them a lesson and was trying to prove that he had the power in the situation and not them. Someone from the school released footage of what had happened when everyone was being evacuated and it made you all look like heroes so he decided to twist the story. It exposed all of you as powered but it made you deserving of all the praise you were quickly getting so he decided to do something. He set the gym on fire, allowing the story to be skewed that you were responsible for the fire and killed everyone that was inside at the time. He was trying to clear out any evidence of what happened inside that gym and he didn’t want us to be known as the ones that stopped Bobo.”

“Waverly…” Nicole muttered, losing herself in the story once she heard what had happened to her love.

“He turned you into the villain that you’re not, he’s taken Waverly and I haven’t heard from Perry since we last saw him so I have no idea what happened to him,” Dolls said as his hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, “Wynonna told me that Waverly mentioned you not being able to be burnt so I knew I had to go and check if you were still alive. You weren’t in there long; I don’t think the fire had the chance to touch you much but Moody caused a lot of damage inside.”

“So how do we get her back?” Nicole asked shakily, her hands gripping her knees tightly, “How do we get Waverly back?”

“I’m taking you to the Homestead and we’re going to figure something out,” Dolls said with a nod, “We need to move quickly because the longer we wait, the more risk was take that she’s not alive. She’s powerful and Moody saw how much, he’s not going to keep her around for long.”

“I don’t care who I have to go through, Dolls,” Nicole said with a shake of his head, “I don’t care what I have to burn down but we’re getting her out of there.”

“Yes, we are,” Dolls responded quickly, “And we’ll clear your name in the process.”

“I don’t care about that.”

“You should because if we don’t, you’re not going to have a chance even if we manage to locate Perry too,” Dolls disagreed seriously, turning a corner almost too quickly, “We find Waverly, we get Moody to confess to exactly what he did and has been doing and then we kill him. Deal or not he deserves everything he gets after what he’s just done.”

“Are you surprised?” Nicole asked doubtfully as her mind drifted to Waverly, feeling the rage in her body take over knowing someone as innocent as her had been taken away for only doing what was right, “If Wynonna doesn’t get to him first, I will.”

“I know it’s hard but we need to be calm about this, we need to be focused,” Dolls spoke quietly, turning to look at the anger on Nicole’s face, “For her.”

“For her,” Nicole exhaled shakily, feeling it burn in her throat and catch in her ribs painfully, “How is Wynonna?”

“Doc is fighting to keep her inside the house but it’s a good thing,” Dolls responded with a nod as they pulled into the Homestead driveway moments later, “With only four of us and our big gun on the inside, we’re going to need anger but we’re going to need smart anger.”

Wynonna rushed out of the house as the car rolled to a stop, Nicole opening her door with a grunt and stepping out holding her arm over her ribs as the elder woman rushed towards her. It startled Nicole as she saw Wynonna stand in front of her and wrap her arms as gently as she could around the redhead but still hearing a hiss of pain before pulling away slowly.

“Haught damn, you’re alive,” Wynonna said with wide eyes and the smallest of smiles, “How are you feeling?”

“Barbequed and angry,” Nicole muttered with a heavy sigh, “Let’s go get our girl back.”

“You’re pretty beat up, we need you but are you up to it?” Wynonna glanced at Dolls who gave her a small nod before turning her focus back to Nicole, “You’re not good to us hurt, we can’t risk you getting killed…again.”

“I didn’t die,” Nicole furrowed her eyebrows and shook her head before sparking a flame on her fingertips, “You said it yourself; you need me. It doesn’t matter how hurt I am, my abilities still work and I’ll do whatever I have to.”

“I’m counting on that,” Wynonna said gently with a nod before turning back towards the house, “Let’s go get out girl back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought! I'll update soon. 2 Chapters to go.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I'm the worst. First of all so so so sorry that I haven't updated this sooner and I really have no excuse because I've finished this story and just needed to edit and post. In saying that (here comes the excuse even though I said there was none) my girlfriend and I just got a new puppy and it's been both of our birthday weeks annnd soccer has started again for me so it's been really busy.  
> Second last chapter though! Again, so so sorry!

Everything in her body ached from what felt like the hairs on her head to her toes but all Nicole was concentrating on was how she was going to find Waverly and pull her out of Black Badge headquarters alive. The drive into black badge headquarters was silent; Doc, Wynonna and Nicole sitting in the back of Dolls’ van as he drove as quickly as he could towards the locked down base. The only sound they could hear was the engine running and the tires against the wet road, Nicole leaning her head back against the van with her eyes closed and her fingers twitching in front of her.

“How are you feeling, Haught?” Wynonna asked quietly, breaking the nervous silence.

“Well there’s not much of me that isn’t aching but I just want to find Waves and bring her home,” Nicole said honestly with a deep sigh, wincing as she moved to sit up properly. Her wound was giving her more trouble than she wanted to admit, Dolls had saved her life but he’d also injured her to the point where she knew that she would require medical attention sooner rather than later. She also knew if Wynonna got a sniff of that thought, she would be sidelined and she wasn’t going to allow a mission to find her girlfriend going on without her, “Is Peacemaker going to fire this time?”

“Peacemaker has a mind of it’s own and I can’t predict what it’s going to do but it’s shot at Bobo plenty of times,” Wynonna grumbled as she looked down at her weapon by her side, “It knew better than me what was going to happen but it’s not going to stutter when I shoot Moody.”

“You’re still thinking about your deal?” Nicole’s eyebrows furrowed, wincing as they moved over a bump in the road.

“Besides getting my baby sister back, that’s all I’m thinking about,” Wynonna glanced to Doc who had his eyes closed with his head resting against the wall of the van like Nicole had been doing moments ago, “If Perry is still alive and we have a chance to free him then we have to do it. It’s better than what Moody has given us and if we don’t stop Moody, god knows what else he is going to do to Doc and I.”

“And me.” Nicole muttered with her hands tightening into fists by her side.

“Moody thinks you’re dead, you could leave whenever you wanted and he wouldn’t know.” Wynonna explained casually with a small shrug, “You could run if you wanted to.”

It hit Nicole hard that Wynonna was right. She could leave if she wanted to without detection from Black Badge and they would still think she’s dead. The old Nicole would have jumped at the chance; the old Nicole would have left without even having to be told but this Nicole couldn’t think about anything but having Waverly safe by her side again. Waverly had saved Nicole from Moody multiple times and she knew it was about time that she paid her back for everything she had done.

“You’d think so.” Nicole uttered under her breath, quietly enough to keep the words to herself.

“We’re almost at the gates,” They heard Dolls call loudly, “When we roll up, you need to play dead until the guards come to inspect the van. When they do, you’re going to have to fight and do it quietly. We take their uniforms and we move quickly. Doc will switch places with one of them and stay out on watch, he’ll be the one getting us out of here when the time comes.”

“I guess we assume the positions then,” Wynonna nodded towards Doc and Nicole, the redhead giving them a nervous glance but positioning herself to slump against the wall; trying to keep the grimace from her face long enough as her heart beat thumped in her ears and her body burned.

She could feel sweat dripping down her forehead and knew it was anything but hot outside, knowing that what was happening inside her body wasn’t normal and the trauma that her body had been through was starting to grip her tighter than she knew.

They heard van roll to a stop, muffled voices of the guards talking to Dolls was next before light streamed into the back; the group staying completely still until the doors were closed behind them. Nicole lunged at one of the guards from her position, grabbing the taser she spotted on his belt instantly and shocking him to the point of unconsciousness. She fell back to her knees once Wynonna and Doc had easily disposed of their guards; pressing her palms flatly against the bottom of the van as she tried to regain her composure. The pain of movement making her nauseous as her senses tried to catch up with what had just happened.

“You okay, Haught?” She heard Wynonna’s muffled voice ask as she looked down to the redhead with a concerned face.

Nicole grimaced with a nod, unable to open her mouth to speak and gritting her teeth tightly.

“I guess this is the fun part.” Doc said sarcastically as he looked down to the unmoving guard hinting to the fact that they were going to have to change into their clothes.

There was no room or time for privacy as the trio dressed into their new uniforms, Nicole looking down to her side as she changed; pulling her shirt away from her wound with a wince. The stickiness of the drying blood causing her further pain as it began to ooze deep red once more. She used her hand to cover it quickly, groaning as she pressed into the wound to stop the bleeding as best as she could in that moment but knowing the quick fix wasn’t going to be enough. Once they were changed they exited the van, Nicole almost crumpling as her feet hit the floor from the short jump to the ground.

She knew she wasn’t going to last very long in a fight, she knew that she was nowhere near ideal condition to do what they were about to do but she didn’t have a choice; Waverly was in trouble so it meant that her pain didn’t matter.

“Stay close with me and keep your heads down,” Dolls muttered as he pulled a weapon from the front of the van, “There’s a holding area in the basement, that’s where Waverly is going to be. If we get split up then we go there, once we find Waves; we won’t have much time to find Moody and do what we need to do.”

“Once we find Waverly, it’s going to be too late,” Nicole disagreed quickly as she looked towards the fortress that was Black Badge Division headquarters. It was everything that she had imagined it would be; it was dark, dreary, intimidating and almost haunting, “Dolls, you and Wynonna go after Moody. I’ll find Waverly and get her out. If you don’t stop Moody then it won’t matter if we find Waverly or not because we won’t be able to leave.”

“Are you up for that?” Wynonna questioned seriously as she placed her hand on Nicole’s shoulder, “This is my sister you’re talking about, I need to know you’re strong enough to get through whoever is down there and find her.”

“I love her too, I’ll find her,” Nicole spoke confidently as she held the Elder Earp’s gaze as the pain faded into the background; finding her focus quickly, “Even if I have to set fire to the whole place.”

“Okay.” Wynonna said with a sigh, giving Nicole’s shoulder a squeeze, “Do whatever you have to.”

Nicole nodded with a deep exhale as Dolls cleared his throat, drawing their attention back to him before he continued to speak, “So when we get inside, we’re going to walk through the security check with our passes and then we’re going to split. Nicole, you’re going to go down to level 1 and you’ll have to get through guards to find where they keep prisoners. We’re going to head up towards Moody’s office and find him first. If you find Perry down there, call us and you’re going to need to bring him with you.”

“What if he’s not there?” Nicole asked seriously, knowing the implications of that very answer could mean whether they left Black Badge headquarters or not.

“Then you get out of here as soon as you have Waverly and you go as far as you can.” Wynonna answered for Dolls in a solemn tone.

“We don’t have to do that, he’s down there.” Dolls spoke confidently as he began to walk slowly towards the entry gate as he threw Doc the key to the van, “Keep it out the sight but somewhere close. We’ll need it on the way out.”

“Good luck.” Doc nodded towards Nicole before he turned his attention to Wynonna, reaching out to take her hand softly.

Nicole looked away, feeling like she needed to give them whatever privacy she could afford them. She looked down to her side, seeing a small patch of dark red against the navy uniform where the bullet had grazed her side and cursed quietly.

“I’m sorry about that.” Dolls muttered as he watched Nicole closely, “I figured it was better that than a shot to the head.”

“It is.” She clenched her teeth as she pulled her shirt from her wound when Wynonna moved to stand next to her.

Without another word being said they walked towards the second security checkpoint, Nicole’s fingers tingled intensely as they scanned their badges to move through without any issue. She had to actively control her urge to let flames burst from her fingertips knowing that she needed to play it cool until she reached the last security checkpoint. The situation weighed heavily on her shoulders, knowing she was responsible for finding the woman she loved and a guy whom she didn’t really like or know for that matter but he was at that point, the key to their survival.

Her heart pounded against her chest, every step she took was a battle within herself to keep moving but she was walking with a purpose like she never had before. A chill ripped through her body as they entered the building, surrounded by those who wished to see them extinct and by walls that had seen such horrors for their kind that they couldn’t repeat. As instructed, they kept their heads down; Nicole’s eyes flitting to those around her every so often as they moved towards the elevators, standing patiently whilst they waited for one to arrive.

The bell of the elevator echoed through Nicole’s skull, the light flashing to signal it was going down and so was she. She glanced to Dolls and Wynonna who gave her a small nod, the Earp sister’s eyes shining in desperation reinforcing how important it was that Nicole got Waverly out of wherever she was safely. Emotion stirred through her body, a lump forming instantly in the back of her throat when she stepped into the eerie elevator; keeping her eyes fixed on Wynonna until the doors closed and blocked her view. She swallowed her fear as the doors opened on level 1, stepping out into the empty hallway with the option of moving left or right.

Level 1 wasn’t much different to what she had seen so far but the walls were a dark grey, the tiles below her feet a shade of eggshell white; something so sterile about the area hit Nicole square in the face. A sharp wave of pain moved through her, breaking through her thoughts and pushing her to move towards what she hoped was the entrance to the basement.

She heard footsteps echoing through the hall, pausing momentarily at the sound before quickly moving towards the nearest door she could find; placing her hand on the doorhandle as she heard an unfamiliar voice call.

“What are you doing down here?”

Nicole kept her gaze firmly set on the door in front of her, shaking the doorhandle lightly before she heard the voice once more.

“Who are you and what are you doing down here?” The voice asked again, this time with a level of impatience, “Show me your clearance badge to be down here or I’m going to report you.”

Nicole looked towards the voice, pausing as she noticed it was a man with a white lab coat and glasses, more to the point with a set of keys and security pass on his belt. His hands were on his hips and the redhead knew she was going to have to do something and quickly to stop the situation from escalating so she let her hands spark beside her; pulling a sharp burst of fire from them and sending it in the direction of the stranger. It hit him square in the chest, launching him to the other side of the long hall and causing him to hit his head hard against the wall so that he slumped to the ground in his now smouldering coat.

Nicole rushed towards him as quickly as she could, taking his keys and his access belt before dragging him by the collar towards the nearest room. Time was of the essence for her and she was very aware of how much danger she was in but she needed to hide him from plain sight and she didn’t have enough of it to find what key would open a door along the corridor so she would have to figure something out herself.

She placed her hand on the nearest doorknob, her hand heating up as she channelled her abilities through it until it became so hot that it began to fall away. It was a quick process, she was soon able to push through the door with her shoulder and drag his unconscious body into the room; a chill running through her body as she saw the pictures on the walls of the room she was now in.

It made her stomach sick to see pictures of dissected bodies and X-Rays on the walls of the office as if people like her were just a sick experiment to them. She didn’t have time to dwell on it because she wasn’t sure how long it would be until someone else came through the hallway and she needed to find Waverly.

She closed the door and began looking through the hallway methodically but the image of what she had just seen burning in the back of her brain as anger began to fill her body. People like Agent Moody preached that powered individuals were the danger when it was people like him who were the most hazardous to society with their skewed beliefs and intolerance to those who were born different.

Nicole searched the hallway, reaching a corner where she found two armed guards standing in front of a secured door that she guessed lead down towards the very place where her girlfriend was being held. She didn’t want to harm them but they were standing between her and Waverly so she had no problem discarding them. The redhead bided her time, deciding that her best option would be to draw them away from the door if she could, using some kind of a distraction.

She used one in the way of doing what she did best, starting a fire in one of the rooms she gained access into and waiting for the smoke to bellow out into the hallway before emerging from another room in front of it as the guards moved to investigate. A silent prayer was said in her head when she placed the lab coat man’s security pass against the access pad; breathing a sigh of relief when it turned green and the door pushed open for her.

It lead to a set of stairs, one that she guessed would take her to the basement and where she would hopefully find Waverly’ or at least that’s what she was hoping. Her body screamed at her in pain, dizziness overtaking her body momentarily so she had to hold the railing tightly on the second flight of stairs she was descending but she knew she couldn’t stop. Weakly, she continued to push forward until she reached the bottom; her heart climbing up into her stomach as she saw the seemingly endless rows of cells with thick doors and numbers lining each side of the wall as far as she could see.

She didn’t have time to waste so she pulled her newly acquired set of keys from her pocket and began walking towards the first door; watching her surroundings carefully to ensure no one else was down in the basement. Nicole didn’t realise how big of a task she was undertaking or how difficult she would find it looking into cells and seeing people just like her but knowing she didn’t have time to get everyone out even though she wanted to.

Panic ensued through her body as the sounding of an alarm rang in the distance, leaving her to wonder what was happening above and pushing her harder to find Waverly even though she was becoming frustrated with the fact that she was halfway down one hallway and hadn’t gotten any closer to finding the woman she loved.

“Hey!” She heard a man call down the hallway, turning her head to see a guard with his weapon aimed at her as he slowly approached her, “On the ground, now.”

“Which cell is Waverly Earp in?” Nicole asked through gritted teeth as she raised both of her hands up towards him with flames roaring from her palms, “I don’t want to do this but I need you to tell me where she is.”

Two shots were fired at her, incinerating as they reached her palms before she sent the most powerful fireball she could manage towards him and throwing him harshly against the wall as his screams of pain filled the echoing hallway. This seemed to set off every powered individual in their cells after hearing a commotion outside, screaming and crying out for help; tearing Nicole into a million pieces as she tried to ignore them.

“I know where Waverly’s cell is,” A woman’s voice got her attention from a cell behind her, “I know where she is. Short, powerful brunette; I’ve seen where she is.”

“Where?” Nicole took two steps backwards, bending down to look through the small hole that was the same in every door, “Where is she?”

“Let me out and I’ll take you to her,” She bargained seriously, her eyes shining through the darkness of the cell, “You have my word and you don’t look so hot yourself. I can help.”

“What do you do?” The redhead hesitated, looking down the hallway to see the still smouldering guard slumped against the wall.

“I shapeshift, I can be whatever you want me to be but I can help you find her.”

Nicole mulled it over quickly in her mind, she knew the woman could have been lying to her; she knew she could have been exploiting her weakness but if this woman said she could help then she would at least let her try.

“What key do they use?” Nicole asked holding up the keys in front of the small opening, hoping for some advice from the woman.

“The master key is the small one with the red handle.”

The door was opened with the key the woman had described, Nicole watching her emerge from the cell slowly; her eyes adjusting to the light as the screams and calls began to grow deafening. The alarm grew louder; her heartbeat grew faster and her body felt as if it was burning up; knowing she wasn’t in the best shape. Her hand reached down to her side, pulling it away to see her uniform was now smudged with her blood from her wound.

“Where is she?” Nicole uttered quietly, squeezing her eyes tightly together as she used the wall to lean against, “Where is Waverly?”

“First of all, I’m Rosita, thank you for getting me out” The womansaid as she eyed Nicole sympathetically, “How did you get down here?”

“Where is she?” Her voice came through gritted teeth and from a dry throat as Nicole asked once more.

“This way,” Rosita nodded quickly before walking quickly towards a door on the opposite side of the hall, Nicole following quickly until they reached what looked to be a reinforced door, “She must be really important if you’re here just for her.”

Nicole only grunted as her shaky hand attempted to place the key into the keyhole, finding Rosita’s hand on hers to guide it where it needed to be and hearing a loud click as the door unlocked. Rosita pulled the door open as light entered the cell, revealing the silhouette of a small woman in the corner of the tiny, padded room with a hessian bag over her head and her hands bound in front of her. Nicole couldn’t move fast enough to get to her, pulling the bag from her head to see her eyes covered by an eye mask and headphones over her ears. Nicole’s heart broke all over again as she saw how fragile Waverly seemed, not even reacting to the fact that the sack had been removed from her head but staying completely still in her place.

“They only brought her in here last night, she was in some kind of trance and I’m guessing this is how they’ve kept her in it. Those cuffs are special, they put them on me when I first got here; it blocks people’s abilities somehow. I’ve heard them talking about it, some kind of electrical pulse or something,” Rosita explained to Nicole as her voice echoed in the background, “Do you have a plan to get out of here?”

Nicole ignored Rosita’s question, gently pulling the headphones from Waverly’s ears and slowly removing the eye mask so the smaller woman’s eyes could adjust gradually to the harsh light in the hallway. She blinked a few times with her eyes on Nicole before they widened, tears instantly filling them and she shook her head wordlessly.

“Waverly…” Nicole uttered as everything around her faded away, the only thing that mattered was the woman in front of her. Relief crashed into Nicole like a tidal wave, knocking her almost breathless as everything fell on her all at once but the screams and cries filling the air pulled her back to the realisation that they were anything but safe. The redhead’s hands moved to Waverly’s cheeks, cupping them gently as her eyes took in the brunette’s delicate form.

“Nicole, I thought you…” Waverly stumbled over her words with a shake of her head, “I saw Dolls shoot you. You died, I saw you die.”

“You did see me get shot,” Nicole gestured to her still bleeding side with a grimace, “But he did it to save me and came to get me. We’re getting out of here and meeting Wynonna outside.”

“We have to kill Moody,” The words surprised Nicole as they left Waverly’s mouth but after what they had been through, she could hardly be surprised, “He can’t get away with this and if he does; we might as well stay here.”

“Wynonna is looking after it but I need to get you out of these,” Nicole looked down to the cuffs bounding Waverly’s hands, looking to Rosita, “Any ideas on how to do this?”

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Rosita shrugged, looking behind her shoulder, “I’ve never seen a key open one of those but we need to hurry up or we’re screwed.”

“Who is she?” Waverly questioned seriously as she finally noticed the other woman’s presence near Nicole; trying to decide whether she was a threat or not.

“Rosita, she helped me find you,” Nicole reassured her girlfriend with a nod, “Are you able to use your abilities at all with these on?”

“I would have been out of here before if I could have.” Waverly answered with a shake of her head, causing Nicole to sigh loudly until she remembered the doors upstairs.

“Your wrists might get a little hot but just trust me on this one, okay?” Nicole asked, receiving a nod from the other woman before the redhead leaned forward to place a soft but brief kiss on Waverly’s lips. She grasped the chain between the cuffs on Waverly’s arms, concentrating heat towards the metal and watching the silver growing orange slowly.

She pulled on the chain tightly as it crumpled in front of her; freeing Waverly’s hands from being bound as they fell to her sides. Nicole didn’t need to question whether Waverly’s abilities were working again because as soon as those restraints were broken; what remained flew against the walls with force.

The smaller woman flung her arms around Nicole’s neck instantly, pulling the redhead into a tight hug as she felt the moisture of tears against her skin. Nicole wrapped one arm around Waverly’s waist softly, the other keeping her balanced against the ground as she winced in pain momentarily but loud enough for Waverly to pull back. The brunette’s eyes widened once more at the recognition of Nicole’s wound, seeing the blood through the uniform she was wearing; her eyes demanding the redhead’s attention.

“I’m okay,” Nicole lied weakly with a small smile which gave way to a grimace almost instantly, “We’ve got to go. Do you think Perry is down here?”

“I haven’t seen him,” Waverly’s expression hardened quickly as she looked up to Rosita who was watching on nervously, “You helped Nicole find me?”

“I saw them bringing you in,” Rosita responded with a nod, “What’s the plan now?”

“We free as many people as we can and we get the hell out of here,” Waverly stood slowly, helping Nicole to her feet slowly and grasping the redhead’s waist to keep her standing up straight, “She’s not going to last a lot longer, I need to get her help.”

“Her body is in shock and by the looks of her, I think her wound is infected,” Rosita observed with a shrug, “I’ve dabbled in the medical field. How do you suppose we get everyone out of here?”

Waverly raised her hand into the air with her fist clenched, her brows furrowed in concentration and her jaw clenched as she stood in silence for a few seconds until they heard a loud series of clicks and creaking as doors began to unlock and push themselves open. Waverly had opened almost every door inside the makeshift prison and those that could; stumbled out of their cell and Nicole knew it was all they could do for them.

The alarm spread into the basement and the lights cut out for just a second before they were replaced with red, flashing ones and almost deafening sirens.

“This way!” Rosita called through the alarms, gesturing for Nicole and Waverly to follow and knowing they didn’t have another choice.

Powered individuals streamed out of their cells, all with different reactions but their common goal was to be free and Nicole only saw that as an advantage for them. She pulled herself from Waverly’s grip, knowing she was only slowing the smaller woman down but settling for holding her hand tightly. As they reached the end of the hallway Waverly paused in her tracks so quickly that Nicole almost hit the back of her as the other woman looked directly at the cell door that remained shut by what the redhead knew was on purpose.

“Waverly, let me out,” Nicole shuddered as she heard a voice that had become all too familiar to her, a voice that would continue to haunt her for some time to come. She wasn’t scared of him anymore, she had no need to be but she was weary knowing her powerful he could be and how convincing he was to anyone who would listen, “Let me out and I will get us all home.”

“Waves, you can’t seriously be thinking of letting Bobo out,” Nicole said doubtfully as she watched her girlfriend closely, noticing the shaking of their still joined hands, “Baby, it’s okay. Whatever we need to do, we can do it without Bobo.”

“I can help you, I promise you that I’ll only help.” He yelled desperately through the small hole in his reinforced wooden door; clearly made just for someone with abilities like his.

“No one deserves this,” Waverly’s voice was low and husky, her throat dry and scratching as she spoke, “But you killed Gretta, you tried to kill all of us, you made me choose between my sister and my girlfriend.”

“Waverly, you can’t leave me in here,” Bobo’s voice grew panicked as he heard Waverly’s words, “You know what they’ll do to me if you leave me in here, I don’t deserve that.”

“It’s exactly what you deserve,” The brunette spat angrily with a shake of her head, her eyes still focussed on his cell door, “You’re the reason why we’re here, you killed my dad.”

“I would have never harmed a hair on your head.”

“But you would have killed everyone I love inside that gym if you were able to,” Waverly squeezed Nicole’s hand as she spoke, Nicole feeling guilty that she doubted the brunette’s thoughts even for just a split second, “If I see you again, I’ll stop you for good.”

“You better be ready to do just that, baby girl,” Bobo growled, as if accepting his fate of being kept inside the cell, “Because I’m going to get out and I’m coming straight to the homestead.”

“Try it, Bobo,” Nicole couldn’t help but snap angrily, feeling the heat rise in her body at another threat from him, “I hope you do.”

“Come on, we have to go.” Rosita reminded them as she stood at an open door towards the stairwell.

Nicole took one last look at Bobo’s cell, seeing his piercing eyes through the red flashing lights as they gazed up angrily through the cell door noticing the mix of fear and hate that stared back at her. She shook the image from her mind as they rushed into the stairwell, keeping her hand joined with Waverly and allowing the other woman to pull her as quickly as her body would allow. The redhead kept her flame alight in her free hand, getting ready for whatever came at them because she knew a split second could mean staying alive or dying.

“There’s an interrogation room on level 3, it’ll be swarming with agents and it’s near Agent Moody’s office which is going to require a hell of a lot of confrontation but I’m guessing that’s where this Perry is if he’s not down with us,” Rosita turned to face the two girls with determination on her face as she looked between the couple, “I’d say we need another set of keys but it seems we have the human lock pick.”

“You said you can shape shift?” Nicole questioned as they continued to climb stairs slowly, receiving a nod from Rosita, “Can you be Moody?”

Without another word, Rosita transformed in front of them into the agent that had sentenced them to die, startling the pair. Looking it at her transformed into Moody made Nicole’s skin crawl and she couldn’t imagine how it made Waverly feel but it was the best plan that they had in that moment.

“Take us up there, we have to find Perry and if you pretending to be Moody is going to help us then I think we just need to pretend to be captured,” Nicole grimaced as she spoke, leaning against the railing at the middle point of a set if stairs, “It’s worth a shot anyway.”

“Okay,” Waverly conceded with a worried sigh, “But if you need to stay in here then I’d agree.”

“I have to keep going,” Nicole responded with a shake of her head, “We have a lot to catch up on but we can do that once we’re out of here.”

“I thought you were dead,” Waverly spoke with a raw tone, her jaw tightening as she finished speaking, “I thought we got you killed.”

“Dolls was protecting me, he still got me but he had to make it look real,” Nicole hissed in pain as Waverly laid a gentle hand near her wound, quickly pulling her hand away from the spot that was causing the redhead so much pain.

“We have to go,” Rosita’s version of Moody pleaded before she started to climb the stairs further, Nicole and Waverly following with joined hands as they heard guns firing and screams down in the basement level, “Keep going.”

They moved as quickly as they could, guards rushing down the stairs towards them being flicked away like ants with just a turn of Waverly’s head. Nicole was cautious of the level of power that the woman she loved was using, knowing how she would regret the harm she caused once they were safe and had time to think over what had just happened. Then again, she wasn’t sure whether they would regret anything they had done after what they had been through.

The door to level 3 was locked before they got there but that quickly changed when the small brunette pushed the door off its hinges as her palm faced out towards the hallway. The alarm seemed to be emanating from that level; full of offices and desks that had been recently abandoned with guards filling probing the emptiness.

Waverly stepped out into the open, her fist tightening as every single guard in the room dropped to the ground, screaming with their heads in their hands. Nicole watched in awe as the small brunette commanded their obedience with a single movement, incapacitating them so easily. They moved forward without another word, Nicole trailing behind the other two as she held her side tightly IN agony. The three girls split up to search each office to see what information they could find that could lead them to Perry but had come up empty handed until they reached the last door.

They reached what they guessed was Moody’s desk, a photo of him and who they could only assume was his young daughter was sitting next to his computer; a reminder of who he was working for each day. Nicole picked the picture up, running her finger over the face of the small girl; feeling an overwhelming presence of guilt settle over her chest. Rosita stood on the outside of the office whilst Waverly looked through his drawers and Nicole took a seat on the edge of the desk with the picture still in her hand.

“What do you think he’d do if his daughter was powered?” Nicole asked with a hushed tone, unable to tear her eyes from the small girl, “Do you think he would make her suffer like you have?”

“I hope she isn’t and if she is then I hope she never has to find out what he’s done,” Waverly responded quickly, “You doing okay?”

“I’m fine.” Nicole lied through her teeth, finally looking up to see Waverly with her eyes focussed on her and only her as she halted the search of Moody’s desk.

“I thought I lost you and I just gave up because I don’t know how to do this anymore without you,” Waverly’s bottom lip quivered for just a moment before she swallowed back some of her pain, “And I don’t want to take a father away from his child, I know what that is like but if we don’t then I’ll lose you for real and I can’t. I won’t.”

“He needs to be stopped.” Nicole conceded as she placed the frame down on the desk, furrowing her brows as she saw a piece of paper crumpled in the corner of the room. She stood slowly, shuffling towards it as Waverly watched on with concern. Nicole groaned loudly as she bent down to grasp the paper in her hands, standing slowly and opening the document in her hands; her eyes quickly flicking over the words, “I guess we’re not the only ones who think that.”

“What?” Waverly questioned, taking strides to the other side of the room where Nicole was. Their eyes poured over the words on the page, quickly understanding that Moody had been given orders to resign within the next seven days due to the board losing confidence in him; finding his vendetta against powered individuals had driven him too far, “Oh my god.”

“That’s why he framed me,” Nicole spoke with wide eyes, glancing to Waverly who have her a questioning look, “He burnt down the gym, saying it was my fault and they saved the school from me. He was desperate to save his job so he came after us like he did and tried to use me as a scapegoat.”

“We need to find Perry, _now._ ”

“Holy crap, hide.” Rosita hissed towards them, pulling the two girls behind the desk inside of Moody’s office. The alarms fell silent and the lights turned on, each of their ears ringing loudly in the absence of any sound until they heard a door open and multiple sets of footsteps edging towards them. Nicole steadied her back against the desk, breathing deeply to expel the pain as the footsteps grew closer and closer.

They glanced up to see whose footsteps belonged to; all three women flinching when they saw the powered individual that Waverly constantly had to fight to keep him out of her head walking through the hall flanked by multiple armed guards. Nicole swallowed thickly, readying herself for a fight should she need it but knowing that her strength level wasn’t anywhere close to where it needed to be to face someone like him.

“Stop.” His voice demanded lowly, holding his hand out towards the guards behind him, “We need to get Agent Perry out of here now. There are too many bodies in here for them not to have come through here.”

They watched as the guards moved into a single file, rushing towards a door around a corner that they couldn’t see from their position but heard the screams of a man whom they could only assume was Perry until it was confirmed; seeing him slumped over and practically being carried.

Waverly and Nicole glanced to each other, an unspoken understanding between the two meaning they knew they were going to have to fight. If Perry was on the same level as they were and he wanted to take their best chance at survival then they were going to have to stop him before he could do so. Waverly leaned forward, pressing a searing kiss into Nicole’s lips; the redhead feeling a sharp pain as the cut on bottom lip stung but unwilling to break away because she knew it would be over all too soon.

She exhaled into the kiss, feeling the absence of Waverly against her once the smaller girl broke away and standing from behind the desk. Without further movement, she discarded the guards with her abilities leaving a battered Perry to fall to the floor weakly and the other powered individual standing alone.

The small brunette raised her hand towards him only to fall to one knee, her body becoming shaky as she fought an internal war as Nicole could only watch on. She clenched her jaw, grunting in pain as she stood to her feet again only to have him take another step towards her with a smirk on his face. She pressed her right palm to her temple as if trying to push him out of her mind but finding herself pushed down to one knee again as he moved into the office.

Nicole steeled herself, pushing her body up to crouch behind the desk unable to just continue to watch Waverly fight for them. She knew she had to do something to help, she didn’t know what good she was going to do in the state she was in but she had to try something; she couldn’t just let him hurt Waverly any longer. Her hand ignited with a blue flame, concentrating on making it burn as harshly as she could before she lunged out from behind cover. Waverly’s abilities had kept him distracted so Nicole had a clear shot at him, standing in front of him and placing the palm of her hand against his chest.

He looked down towards her with wide eyes as Nicole heard the searing of his flesh against her hand; everything happened so quickly that he didn’t even have time to scream. She backed him up against the wall; feeling her hand move deeper into his body as the distinct smell of burnt skin filled the air. Nicole heard him take a desperate gasp for air before his chest caved and her hand withdrew quickly. She watched him fall to the floor, the middle of his chest charred and hollow to the point where the redhead could almost see the tile on the other side.

She felt arms spin her around; unable to do anything but obey she looked Waverly in the eyes who cupped her cheeks in her hands gently; urging Nicole to speak.

“I had to stop him.” Nicole stuttered, her eyes flicking to Rosita who had an expression of shock but not fear having transformed back to actual self.

“I know you did, baby,” Waverly hushed her girlfriend quietly, looking down to her side with concern, “You’re not going to be able to help me lift Perry.”

“I can help,” Rosita chimed in, taking two steps towards them, “Where are we taking him?”

They heard the heavy door open from the stairwell, footsteps following behind them and as they prepared themselves for another fight; Nicole saw a welcomed sight that sent a wave of relief coursing through her body.

They saw Wynonna and Dolls marching forward with Moody, Peacemaker aimed at the back of his head moving towards what they assumed was the very office they were standing in.

“Wynonna!” Waverly called desperately, leaving Nicole’s side to rush towards her sister; using one hand to hold Moody in place as she brushed passed him and the other to grip the back of Wynonna’s shirt tightly as they hugged.

Nicole dipped her head, allowing her body to rest as she sat herself down and pushed backwards so that she was leaning against a wall for support. Her breaths were labored and focussed, her heartbeat grew weak but she wasn’t going to allow anyone to know just how much of a struggle she was finding just mustering the energy to stand. Rosita moved to Nicole’s side, wordlessly sitting next to the redhead in a show of support as she watched the situation in front of her unfold.

“What happened to you guys?” Wynonna asked as she pulled back from her sister, breaking from her as Waverly stood in front of Dolls.

“I thought you killed her so you’re lucky she found me before I found you,” Waverly’s voice shook, eyeing her friend carefully before glancing back to Nicole who was focussing on her feet in front of her, “She told me that you saved her?”

“I didn’t want to shoot her but I had to make it believable.” Dolls responded seriously, placing a hand on Waverly’s shoulder, “I’m so sorry I let them take you.”

“So am I,” Perry’s voice filled the silence weakly, all eyes drawing to him as he slowly stood. He held his ribs, his right eye was swollen and he was covered in bruises but he was alive and that’s what mattered most to them, “And if you hold your part of the deal, I’ll hold mine.”

“So we’ll be safe?” Wynonna demanded an answer, her eyes focussing on an unmoving Moody in front of them, “You’ll clear our names and get the real story out about how we saved everyone at Purgatory High?”

“I’ll do whatever I can so that you live comfortably without any blame for what happened,” He coughed and spluttered throughout his sentence, suffering from the beatings he had been given, “We still have a deal, I will protect you however I can and Black Badge will leave you alone until we need your help; that’s it.”

“How are you going to clear my name?” Nicole asked from her place, eyes shifting towards her in the middle of the office seeing the man she had killed near the doorway, “He publicly blamed me for what happened.”

“Holy crap,” Wynonna said with wide eyes as she looked between the body and Nicole, “You look awful, Haught.”

“I feel it.” She winced as she attempted to move, abandoning the idea as she felt the sharp pain shooting up her body.

“I’ll hold a press conference; tell them everything has been Moody’s responsibility.”

“You better not be lying to me or so help me god, this next bullet will be for you and we’ll take our chances on the run.” Wynonna spoke through gritted teeth, watching her sister move quickly back towards Nicole’s side but her hand still up to hold Moody in place.

“Wynonna.” Doc warned lowly, only receiving a glare from the raven haired woman.

“You have my word,” Perry responded seriously, gesturing to Nicole and Waverly, “They just saved my life, you have my word.”

The next thing Nicole heard was Peacemaker firing, out of the corner of her eye she saw Moody fall to his knees then to his face as blood slowly oozed out the back of his neck. Her eyes stayed focussed on the picture of his daughter, feeling a sickness in her stomach at what had just happened but knowing it had been the only way for them to survive.

Moody was dead, everything he had done was over but they just had to hope that Perry would keep his word and hold those who had been responsible truly accountable. There was a silence that haunted the room after the gunshot had fired, the sounds of alarms and yelling surrounding them from above and below almost fading into the background.

“What happens to the people down in the basement who have escaped?” Waverly questioned, “Are you going to let them go?”

“I never wanted to keep them here,” Perry said with a nod, leaning against a desk for support, “If they don’t cause any trouble then they can stay away from here but I’ll do whatever I need to in order to keep them under control.”

“Rosita is leaving with us.” Nicole eyed Perry, the words leaving her mouth slowly, “She helped us save your ass so she is coming with us.”

“That’s fine but you need to get out of here now before Black Badge get some reinforcements and this place is locked down again,” Perry said with a nod, his next words being directed to Dolls, “We’ll call you in soon and we’ll talk but my word is good. I’ll clear your names in the next 12 hours, the board were already moving Moody on so they’ll take these actions for what they are and sweep it under the rug.”

“Do you trust him?” Wynonna asked Dolls who only gave her a small nod, enough of a reaction for her to lower her gun that was now trained on Perry.

“Follow me, I’ll get us back to the van.” Dolls stepped over the bodies of Moody and the other powered individual before reaching Nicole. He offered his hand to her, pulling her up slowly after she had accepted it and moving under her arm to help her walk.

He ushered them through the way they came, Waverly taking point and removing anyone who posed an issue to them until they reached the van where Doc was waiting for them with the engine running. He gave Wynonna a questioning look who only returned it with a solemn nod, taking Waverly in his arms for a quick hug before they piled in the back and left Black badge headquarters behind.

Nicole gasped quietly as Waverly shifted her shirt away from the wound on her side, eyeing it with tears that were threatening to break and a stiff upper lip.

“We need to get you to the hospital,” Waverly broke the silence inside the van, the only other words being spoken were quiet mutterings from Wynonna to Doc, “My poor, brave baby.”

“I’m okay, Waves,” Nicole responded with a laboured smile, reaching out to grasp Waverly’s hand in her own, “I have you back, I’m okay.”

“You’re not okay,” The brunette responded instantly, “After everything that just happened, you’re not okay.”

“We’ll get her some medical attention,” Dolls interrupted quietly, “We will get back to the homestead and we’ll find someone that will come to her to check it out. She’s just going to need to be stitched up and given some anti biotics.”

“See, I’ll be fine.” Nicole brushed her girlfriend off lightly, “I can’t believe we just pulled that off.”

“You and me both,” Waverly responded, leaning forward to rest her forehead against Nicole’s, “I’m sorry you got dragged into all of this, I’m sorry I involved you in the first place. I should have just stayed away.”

“No, you shouldn’t have,” Nicole countered her girlfriend fiercely, “If you stayed away then we never would have met and I would have left Purgatory by now without even knowing what was here for me.”

“You were just a lot safer before,” Waverly spoke quietly, her voice trailing off as she spoke but she cleared her throat to continue to speak, placing a lingering kiss on Nicole’s temple after pulling the security guard cap from her head, “I’m not letting you out of my sights until you’re better. I don’t know what I would have done if I lost you.”

“I know but if I can stay in Purgatory then I will.” Nicole grimaced as they travelled over a speed bump.

“Doc,” Waverly chastised weakly, her eyes never leaving the redhead just trying to will her to feel better but she knew her girlfriend needed medical attention soon, “Be careful.”

“I’m trying.”

“So what happens next?” Waverly turned towards her sister as she asked the question, “After we get Nicole the help she needs, what’s next?”

“Depending on what happens with Perry, I guess that’s going to depend on you,” Wynonna answered slowly and carefully, “If we can stay without Black Badge having too much contact with us then I think we should but the whole town is going to know that we have abilities now; their going to know what happened at the school.”

“No, they’re going to know that I have them,” Nicole countered gently, “They don’t have to know if you do or not.”

“But they’re going to make up their mind about it anyway,” Waverly shrugged, the thought of leaving the town she grew up in echoing through her mind, “I guess once Nicole’s healed, we’re going to have to make a decision about what we’re going to do.”

“We can trust Perry, he’ll keep his end of the bargain,” Dolls reminded his friends, running a hand over his hair as he took a moment to look at everyone in the group, “We’re stronger as a group and if we stay here then you’ll be left alone for the most part.”

“But did we just go through all of that to just stay protected for the most part when there are people being locked up like I was all over the country?” Waverly questioned seriously, “Are we just going to sit back and let it happen when we know exactly what kinds of places their taken?”

“We’re only a handful of people, Waves,” Wynonna said painfully, “I want to do whatever I can to help people but I think we have to start right here in Purgatory. If Perry can see our way and what we’ve done can influence people then it’s a start. We can look at saving the world one headquarters at a time once red here is healed and we’ve all recovered but for now I think we are no use to anyone until we’re ready. We don’t know how many people still oppose us, we don’t know how many people with abilities don’t even want our help.”

“Guys, this is super sweet but where are we going and who are you all?” Rosita asked with a shake of her head as she sat in the very back of the van, “How the hell did you get down into the basement with guard uniforms on and just kill Agent Moody?”

“It’s a really long story,” Nicole mumbled with a nod, pulling Waverly towards her body once more, “But I guess we’re kind of like one screwed up version of the Avengers right now with a lot less money and a lot more personal issues.”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself, Haught,” Wynonna said darkly, a change in her had been evident since she had placed the gun barrel to the back of Moody’s head.

Nicole couldn’t remove the face of Moody’s young daughter from her mind, burned into her brain for what she knew would be a long time. She didn’t feel bad for Moody, she thought he deserved worse than an instant death but she felt bad for those who managed to love him; those who had been shielded from his truth.

She felt her body burning up, closing her eyes to see the face of the powered individual whom she killed as he hurt Waverly; remembering the smell, the feeling of his ribcage caving in under her hand as it literally burned a hole through him. She shook the image from her mind, not wanting to dwell on what she had to do to survive knowing it was no different to the lengths she had gone in the past but instead she had done so to protect someone she loved.

It wasn’t something Nicole was used to, she wasn’t sure she had loved someone before seeing as her parents were the reasons why she was on the run in the first place. She fell for Waverly quicker than she had expected, knowing that she didn’t have a choice but to embrace her feelings because they weren’t going away and she didn’t want them to. She wasn’t used to how love could make her feel strong and weak at the same time, she wasn’t used to how it made her throw her cautions into the wind just to ensure that the other woman was okay.

If Perry kept his word then she knew she would have plenty of time to tell Waverly just how she was feeling, hoping that the brunette knew without her needing to say anything just yet. If Perry didn’t keep his word then Nicole would keep hers, she’d take Waverly as far away as they could manage and it would be her responsibility to keep her girlfriend safe; which isn’t something she took lightly.

For that very moment though, they had vanquished two dragons in almost the same number of days. They had stopped Bobo, knowing that it probably wasn’t the last they had seen of him but they had placed a permanent end to Moody’s reign all just to try and make better lives for themselves and for those who were just like them. For that moment, Nicole needed rest because her body ached and burned. For that moment she was content in the van with Waverly at her side, whispering sweetly into her ear as she felt herself drifting to sleep from the exhaustion her body felt and the trauma it had just endured. For that moment she would be able to sleep knowing her love was safe and they would live to fight another day; whenever that new day would be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought. I will update this next week to wrap it all up and won't take as long.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm so sorry, for some reason I thought i posted the last chapter to this story!!! Turns out I didn't and I've just been off thinking I had!!

Silence. Dead silence seemed like the only time Nicole felt like she could hear her own thoughts since they had rescued Waverly from Black Badge, the only time she could find clarity within herself.  She sat in the middle of the rebuilt barn, a blanket over her shoulders and her feet pulled up to her chest; watching the full moon through the open door. It had been a month since the pep rally and just under that since they had been in Black Badge headquarters to rescue Waverly. A lot had changed for them but at the same time a lot had stayed frozen in time, unlikely to shift soon.

The whole incident was swept under the rug after Nicole’s name was publicly cleared from the situation and although authorities didn’t acknowledge them, they were held as reluctant heroes across the country. They were outed as powered, one of the biggest things that had changed for them but due to public pressure after what had happened; they were cleared of any wrong doing and pardoned from capture upon their identification. Perry was now responsible for Black Badge in Ghost River Triangle, which meant he was now responsible for Wynonna, Waverly, Doc, Nicole and Rosita who stayed after being granted permanent release.

He had kept his word, they were mostly left alone with the exception of when Black Badge required their help, the redhead kept on the sidelines until her wound was fully healed and she was cleared. It took longer for her body to heal than expected, she had a permanent scar as a reminder of how close she had come to death and how hard her body had to work to restore itself back to health after it had been put through so much. Still, guilt sat on her chest every night when she tried to sleep knowing there were still so many people like her imprisoned, murdered for no better reason than being different. It didn’t help that she saw the picture of Moody’s daughter every time she closed her eyes, smelt the stench of burnt flesh from the man who tried to hurt Waverly and wondered whether she would ever forget. She understood that she did what she needed to do, she didn’t regret it knowing they had to fight to survive and that’s what she did best but she had never had so much time to reflect upon it.

She would never stop being paranoid; she would never stop looking over her shoulder because that’s what a life on the run had taught her to do and she wasn’t going to shake that. Some days she itched for a change of scenery, wanting to take Waverly and just never look back but she accepted that it was no way to live and the woman she had fallen so hard for deserved better.

Things on the surface were changing, the public were becoming more aware of the conditions and the situations powered individuals were being placed in; how being uncovered by authorities lead to a sure death sentence and the majority were outraged. There were public protests, small underground movements and even human right violation cases taken to the supreme courts but Nicole knew that they would just disappear in a matter of time and they would go back to fighting every day for a normal life.

They had made a positive difference; she couldn’t deny that and she had seen little campaigns like that all before and they have crumbled under the weight of true responsibility and people’s reluctance to change. It was only a matter of time before someone like Bobo Del Rey rose to the surface, trying to control people with fear rather than just trying to be understood and the cycle would start all over again. For that moment in time though, Bobo Del Rey was still locked up in Black Badge headquarters, something that Nicole didn’t like to think about but she could acknowledge that the world was safer without someone as twisted as him running free.

“This is the third time I’ve found you out here at night,” Nicole looked down as she heard the voice even though she didn’t need to, hearing it in her dreams and her thoughts more than enough to know exactly who it was. She saw a sleepy Waverly standing in the doorway of the barn, her big, blue puffy jacket covering her body but her nose was red and her breath was visible in the moonlight; making how cold it is outside so painfully obvious, “It’s much warmer in my bed but there has to be a reason you keep coming out here.”

“It clears my mind,” Nicole said with a shrug, holding her arms out to Waverly who obliged without hesitation and approached her girlfriend with a tired smile, finding herself wrapped in the redhead’s arms and tucked under the same blanket, “I can’t sleep again.”

“I told you to wake me when that happens,” Waverly weakly chastised, leaning her body back into Nicole’s so that her head tucked under the redhead’s chin, “Is your side hurting again?”

“No, I just can’t stop thinking about what happened,” Nicole responded with a quick shrug. She had tried to keep this hidden from Waverly as much as she could, not wanting to admit just how bothered she had been by everything, “It’s just a lot to process. It’s going to take me a while because I’m conflicted as hell but having you here makes it a lot better.”

“What are you conflicted about?”

“We’re out here, safe when there are so many of us out there dying or scared for their lives because of people like Perry who we made a deal with,” Nicole confessed seriously, pausing in the middle of her sentence, “But I have you in my arms right now and we did what we had to do to survive which is how I live. I live to fight another day so I don’t know why I feel so different about this.”

“Because you have time now to think about it,” Waverly suggested thoughtfully, breaking the silence that passed between them, “Because you’re a good person and this affected you more than you thought it would and that’s okay. This isn’t as simple as yes or no now, there’s so many consequences to our actions good and bad and we have to wear that.”

“I relive it every night when I go to sleep. I go through everything that happened whenever I close my eyes but I make the same choices that I did because I’m always going to choose you over everything else. I don’t regret what I did, who I had to stop…” Nicole tried to explain her external thoughts as best as she could, looking down to the brunette, “I know this probably sounds really lame right now but I love you and I’d make the same choices again just so we can have moments like this.”

“I love you too baby,” Waverly’s voice just above a whisper as she shifted her body to look at Nicole’s shining eyes in the moonlight. They had been dancing around those three words for a few weeks now, Waverly figuring Nicole was waiting until she could communicate it properly because they had said everything but that as they helped each other through the recovery process, “We should get you inside, it’s too cold to be sitting out here.”

Nicole only nodded; knowing Waverly was right and not wanting to be anywhere that the brunette wasn’t at that moment. She leaned down to capture Waverly’s lips in her own softly, a content sigh leaving the brunette’s mouth as they slowly broke away and a different fire began to burn inside of both of them.

When daylight broke, the couple made their way downstairs for breakfast before Waverly’s morning shift at the diner started; Nicole deciding she would catch up on all the missed homework that was piling up until the brunette clocked off for the afternoon.

Nicole glanced back to Waverly as they arrived in the kitchen, finding Wynonna asleep with her head on the table and her body slumped uncomfortably in the chair. The confrontation had taken its toll on Wynonna more so than everyone else even though she would never admit to it. Just like Nicole, it was taking time for Wynonna to return to normal but being who she was she internalised and compartmentalised everything until alcohol was her only option to silence her thoughts.

“I’ll make her a coffee,” Waverly said with a sigh, intentionally brushing passed Nicole and letting her hand drag slowly against the redheads back to keep their bodies in contact for as long as possible, “Can you try and wake her up?”

“On it,” Nicole nodded before she approached the elder Earp sister. She took in Wynonna’s position; her face was squashed against the table, her mouth was open with drool marks over her cheek, Peacemaker in one hand and a half eaten donut in the other. Nicole placed her hand on Wynonna’s shoulder, shaking her gently in her first attempt to wake her up, “Wynonna, wake up. I’m thinking donuts for breakfast and yours are the only ones around.”

“Touch my donuts and you’ll meet Peacemaker for real,” Wynonna lifted her head instinctively, pointing the donut towards Nicole instead of using her other arm. She blinked slowly, dropping both Peacemaker and the donut to rub her eyes roughly, shaking crumbs from her hair and cracking her neck, “What time is it?”

“Its seven in the morning,” Waverly answered as she poured Wynonna a coffee, placing the steaming hot liquid in front of her sister purposefully, “Drink this and go have a shower, you can’t keep doing this to yourself.”

“I most certainly can,” Wynonna protested as she picked up the coffee, cradling the cup in her hands, “If you had a dinner meeting with Perry and Dolls last night that ended up back at Black Badge again, you would have woken up the same way. Besides, I saw Haught stuff escape out into the barn so I know I’m not the only one having trouble sleeping.”

“You had a meeting with Perry and you went back to Black Badge?” Waverly looked to Nicole who kept a steady eye on Wynonna, “Why didn’t you tell us that was happening?”

“Because I know how stressed you two are already and I’m trying to be a good big sister.”

“Which I love you for but you need to keep us in the loop,” Waverly pulled out the chair next to Wynonna, resting her hand on her sister’s knee, “You know, seeing as we’re all in the same situation and all.”

“Perry wanted to see how you two were, he wanted to go over some ground rules like we’re kids,” Wynonna grumbled after taking a sip of her coffee, “He wanted to remind us that we can’t leave Purgatory, that he’s our only option for a peaceful life at this point seeing as everyone knows about us now. Dolls thinks he’s been spooked by what’s going on with all the protests and stuff but he also knows that Perry’s seen the security camera footage of what happened inside Black Badge. He’s scared of you both and wanted to flex his muscle back.”

“So Dolls still thinks Perry is our best option then?” Nicole questioned seriously, folding her arms over her chest as she moved to the other side of the table.

“He thinks Perry is our only option,” Wynonna placed her mug down on the table, “Dolls thinks anyone else would have tried to kill us and make an example out of us to those protesters Perry seems so scared about right now.”

“And they would have ended up like Moody and whoever else tried to stop us inside Black Badge,” Waverly countered firmly, glancing to Nicole who nodded to the brunette, “Perry seems fine but do you actually trust him? Why did you go back to Black Badge?”

“I trust Perry as far as I can throw him and he’s bigger than me but I think he knows that so he wanted to prove something to me,” Wynonna responded after taking a moment to process her thoughts, “I went back there because he wanted to show me something, he wanted to show me that they still have Bobo. I saw him with my own eyes, he didn’t see me but he looked rough. He’s keeping Bobo contained in a different place to where you found him and he’s being treated well, which I’m not sure how I feel about but at least we know he’s not going to get out of there. He’s contained, not hurting anyone anymore and we’re safe so until we work out what else we can do, we just have to stick to this deal we made.”

“It just feels like Black Badge have their hands gripped tightly around our necks. He took you there just to prove that,” Nicole chimed as she watched the Earp sisters intently, “I mean, they’d hunt me down if I decided to leave just because they can’t get their paws on me if they wanted to like they could if I stayed. They want us to think we’re free and I don’t know about you but I definitely don’t feel free.”

“I made this deal because it was the best one we had in front of us at the time. I did it because I wanted to keep Waves safe and protect her even though I know she can do that herself,” Wynonna leaned forward in her chair, her hand covering her sisters on her knee as she pushed the coffee away from her with her other hand, “But it’s not going to stay that way forever. One way or another something is going to happen and we’re going to have to pry ourselves from Black Badge’s grasp even if it has to be by force. There are whispers out there; tides are shifting and people are fighting back.”

“But for right now, you’re okay to stay how we are?” Nicole cocked her head to the side slightly, running a hand through her messy hair.

“We can use Perry as much as he will try and use us. We know about Black Badge’s headquarters but we can learn a hell of a lot off him. He’s a nice guy but I’ve seen people like him become power hungry and I’ve seen them become corrupted for less,” Wynonna’s voice grew with conviction when she looked between the two girls, “We can use him to get what we want, to get what we need and that includes leaving Bobo to rot in a padded cell for the rest of his sorry ass life.”

“You’re right,” Waverly agreed slowly, “So we just wait until that time comes when we have to fight again?”

“That’s what I’m thinking, baby girl.”

“So I guess we need to bide our time until we’re strong enough, until we have enough people to take Black Badge down in Purgatory completely,” Waverly furthered her sisters thoughts, catching on quickly as a spark formed in her eyes, “Until we’re completely free, finally.”

“We’re never going to change everyone’s opinions but we’ve already started to and it’s working,” Wynonna responded with a shrug, her attention turning to the redhead on the other side of the room, “But with all of this in mind, what are you going to do? You’ve been dragged into this already more than you should have and if you don’t want to be a part of this when the time does come then I wouldn’t blame you. You’ve done enough but I know we could certainly use you to burn that whole place to the ground.”

“I’m in,” Nicole said without hesitation, her eyes firmly on Waverly as she spoke, “Whenever this happens, I’m in.”

“Good,” Wynonna winked subtly, turning to her sister and placing a kiss on the top of her head, “But for now, we just have to play the part and be as normal as we can be. Maybe you two can enjoy the relative silence for a while until you get dragged into these super boring meetings.”

“Wynonna, I know you’re just trying to be a good sister and I know you’re doing this for me but will you just let us make our own decisions?” Waverly asked quickly, ducking her head so her sister would look at her, “And don’t tell me that you’re okay when you’re not.”

“None of us are okay but we have to accept that for now,” Wynonna responded with a small shrug, “This the hand we’ve been dealt and this is what we will play with. Now, if you’ll excuse me; I need to go throw up and sit in the shower for a while.”

“Sounds magical.” Nicole mumbled as they both watched Wynonna stand from the kitchen table in a hurry, rushing up the stairs until the bathroom door slammed.

“You know they probably couldn’t catch you if you left, right?” Waverly asked hesitantly, her eyes staying focused on the table in front of her.

“I have a feeling it would be a lot harder than before but I know I could do it,” Nicole replied with a small shrug, moving to take a seat where Wynonna had just been, “But I came to Purgatory to try and settle for a while, this is my home now and I’m not going to leave unless you’re with me or you tell me to.”

“I’m going to hold you to that, you know that right?”

“I hope you do.” Nicole leaned over to kiss Waverly delicately, pulling away so that their faces were still just inches apart, “We should get you to work so Nedley can get his morning coffee or we might find ourselves in trouble.”

\---

It was just after the lunch rush at Shorty’s diner, business a little slower than what they were used to with regular customers avoiding the place run by the Earp family but they knew it was just a matter of time before people slowly made their way back. Nicole had her headphones in her ears, sitting in her usual booth with her homework splayed over the table to the point that she was almost forgetting what it looked like underneath all of the paper.

Her eyes grew heavy; her head leaned up against the window as the sound of her music slowly faded into the background until she felt a hand shaking her shoulder roughly. Nicole’s eyes flew open, her hand under the table igniting immediately until she saw whom the hand belonged to.

“You’re really trigger happy, you know that right?” Rosita asked in her Shorty’s uniform with raised eyebrows and wide eyes. The redhead shook the flames from her hand immediately, quickly looking around to ensure no one had seen what she had just done, “I just came to see if you were still alive, Waverly asked me to tell you she was just going out back and then she’s done.”

“Oh, thanks,” Nicole cleared her throat quickly, tugging her headphones from her ears one at a time, “Sorry.”

“That’s okay,” Rosita responded with a small shrug, her eyes drifting to Nicole’s papers, “I really don’t miss being at school but it sure beats the hell out of being a prisoner.”

“You probably shouldn’t say that too loudly,” Nicole warned quietly, having known Rosita for the past month taught her that she was a little rough around the edges from almost a year in captivity and undergoing experiments but she had fit in nicely with the group for that moment. Waverly had gotten her a job at Shorty’s and she had found her own place to live but finding herself also under Black Badge’s watch once more, “People don’t know you’re powered and you should keep it that way, trust me it’s a lot easier around here when you’re not.”

“Got it,” Rosita responded with a nod, “Are you still having trouble sleeping?”

“How did you know that?”

“Waverly told me,” She shrugged as if it were common knowledge, “She’s having trouble sleeping too.”

“She is?” This news genuinely surprised Nicole, knowing that Waverly had gone through more than anyone else besides Wynonna throughout the whole confrontation but the small brunette was also very good at hiding it, “I mean I knew she was at the start but I didn’t know she still was.”

“Take it from someone who knows trauma when I see it,” Rosita began to slowly back away from the table, “You’re both going to take a long time to go back to normal if you ever can but if you keep miss smiley around, I think you’ll be okay.”

“I never really thanked you for helping me find Waverly,” Nicole said with a nod, “Or thank you for helping us get through BBD headquarters.”

“Well you did let me out of there so…,” Rosita said with a shrug, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go earn a generous tip from that cute stranger in the corner.”

“Cute stranger in the diner, sounds familiar,” Waverly said on approach to the redhead with a tired smile on her face, “Are you ready to go?”

“I’m definitely ready to get out of here,” Nicole spoke with a nod, gathering her papers as neatly as she could whilst Waverly watched with amusement, “Sorry, I made more of a mess than I thought I would.”

“At least you’re attempting to catch up on your homework.”

“That you somehow never fell behind with,” Nicole furrowed her eyebrows, stuffing the sheets of paper into her backpack before shuffling out of the booth and taking Waverly’s hand as she offered it, “How long was I asleep for?”

“Only like half an hour,” They walked out of Shorty’s with their fingers intertwined, Waverly’s other hand holding Nicole’s forearm tightly, “I kind of just wanted to let you sleep but I was pretty ready to get out of there.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that you haven’t been sleeping?” Nicole asked as she reached for her car keys in her pocket when they reached her car in the corner of the parking lot, “I thought that it got better for you. Why did you tell Rosita but not me?”

“Because I didn’t want you to feel responsible for it like I know you will when I tell you why,” Waverly’s gaze dropped to their linked hands. She moved until her back was against the passenger door of the car but ensuring she could pull Nicole with her so they were still in close proximity, “And because I’m getting more sleep than you are.”

“Which isn’t much,” Nicole furrowed her brows and ducking her head, “So why do you think I’d blame myself?”

“Because I used to dream a lot about when daddy died, I used to have nightmares for years after that happened. I had nightmares after I turned Mercedes and Beth in knowing what I sentenced them to just so I’d be safe,” The small brunette seemed to get smaller in Nicole’s eyes as her lower lip trembled, smiling sadly towards the redhead with pain laced with love in her expression, “And now I have nightmares about Dolls shooting you, when I thought he killed you even though he saved you. I have nightmares about how you passed out in the van on the way back from Black Badge and how I thought I was going to lose you then and there.”

“Waves…”

“The nightmares I have are about things that are my fault and I didn’t want to worry you about them because ultimately, I caused all of that to happen,” Waverly shrugged as if it were simple, guilt riddled in her words. She squeezed Nicole’s hands and sighed deeply before she opened her mouth to speak again, “You have to understand that I thought you were dead from the time I was taken away to the time you found me and I was just alone with my thoughts that whole time. I thought I was responsible for what happened to you; I thought I lost you before I could really tell you how I felt or what you mean to me. It hurt me more than anything I have ever felt and it seems so real when I dream so I have to carry that because it’s my burden and not yours. I’m still mad at Dolls for what he did without even so much as looking at me, I haven’t forgiven him and I’m not going to for a while.”

“So I’ve seen,” Nicole responded with the smallest of smiles, remembering the times she had used her abilities to make life a little difficult for their friend, “But he really did save my life, who would have thought getting shot in the side would be such a blessing.”

“But I’m okay and I’ll be fine so long as I can wake up from those and have you next to me,” Waverly let go of Nicole’s hand to pull on the redhead’s shirt so their bodies were flush against each other as they leaned up against the redhead’s car in the place where their complex relationship had begun, “Full circle, huh?”

“I guess so,” Nicole’s smile grew as she caught the reference, having zero self-control left as she leaned down to kiss Waverly as passionately as she could manage in a public space.

Her hands cupped Waverly’s face gently, holding her as if she were made of glass but needing to convey every emotion that was spinning in her mind at that moment. She wanted to show the brunette that she was going nowhere and they were both safe for that moment. The kiss sent shivers shooting down Nicole’s spine, feeling Waverly’s tongue brush against her bottom lip and having to do everything in her power to stop from letting a muted moan leave her throat. Waverly placed her hand over Nicole’s heart, the redhead sure she would be able to feel her heart pounding in her palm knowing how much it raced whenever the other woman was around.

She furrowed her brows, knowing that they needed to stop but unwilling to be the one to part from their kiss. There was something so soft yet powerful about Waverly that just commanded every ounce of Nicole’s attention, every sense in her body, every thought in her mind. She felt the other woman smile against her lips, gently and subtly nipping at her lower lip with her teeth before a familiar sound of movement pulled them from each other almost instantly.

Their eyes were drawn to the very spot Bobo Del Rey had emerged the first time Nicole had made contact with him, both unwilling to move as they watched closely for any sign of something further. Nicole took the smallest step back from Waverly as their bodies both turned to face the direction of the sound, the redhead feeling her heartbeat thump even harder than it had been just seconds ago.

“I get the feeling we’re being watched,” Nicole broke the silence, clenching her jaw as she took a step towards the spot they had heard the sound; unable to see any movement, “You can’t tell me I’m the only one.”

“I feel it too,” Waverly’s voice left her mouth slowly, furrowing her eyebrows as she exhaled shakily from a mix of excitement of what they had just been doing and fear of what they had just heard, “But maybe it’s because we were just making out in the Shorty’s parking lot so I’m sure we had a small audience if people could see us.”

“It feels like more than that.” Nicole swallowed thickly before finally moving her gaze back to Waverly who was concentrating on the location of the sound.

“It’s like I can sense him like I could that night,” Waverly looked around the parking lot, her eyes landing on the newly replaced Shorty’s diner sign that subtly swayed in the light breeze, “But that’s crazy and he can’t be…Wynonna said he was still in Black Badge this morning.”

Nicole exhaled deeply, feeling the all-familiar sense of tingling in her fingers as they stood alone in the parking lot in front of their car. She could sense him too, as if she could feel the trouble brewing in the air like a dark, heavy cloud above them as it gathered force and energy. Her hands clenched into fists by her sides to try and stop them from buzzing, looking around the parking lot as her senses heightened all at once.

They were alone, there was no doubt about it besides the people inside the diner and the few cars driving passed. There was no sign of Bobo Del Rey but she couldn’t understand why it felt like he was right there, why it felt like he was watching over them and warning them that he was coming like he had promised her when she left him to rot. Nicole turned her attention back to Waverly whose eyes were glued to the direction of the noise, reaching out to link her fingers with the brunette’s slowly. She flinched momentarily, turning back to Nicole with an anxious look on her face and confusion in her eyes.

“We should go,” Nicole spoke quietly as she took one last look around the parking lot before unlocking her car, “He’s not here.”

“He can’t be,” Waverly furrowed her eyebrows, looking to the Shorty’s diner sign that had stilled despite the same breeze moving through the air, “Wynonna saw him.”

“She did,” Nicole nodded quickly, leaning over to place a gentle kiss on Waverly’s temple, “Maybe we’re just tired, maybe this whole thing has taken a toll on us.”

“Yeah…” Waverly said unsure of her answer, closing her eyes slowly and bringing her free hand to rub her eyes, “Let’s just get out of here.”

Wordlessly Nicole captured Waverly’s lips in her own briefly before opening the door for the brunette. The smaller woman eyed the brush until Nicole got into the car next to her, shuffling as close as she could get to the redhead. She rested her cheek against Nicole’s shoulder as the car started, needing to feel as many points of contact as she could to remind herself that her love was right next to her.

“You’re staying at the homestead again tonight, right?” Waverly closed her eyes slowly, trying to settle her mind as they pulled out from the parking lot.

“I honestly don’t know why I still say that I live there,” Nicole said lightly with the smallest of smiles, “I’m not sure I know how to sleep without you anymore.”

“We’re in this together from now on, okay?” Waverly reminded her girlfriend as more of a statement than a question, “Whatever that means.”

“Whatever it means.” Nicole responded with a nod, turning to kiss the top of Waverly’s head quickly but meaningfully.

She came to Purgatory with a will to find a. safe haven and found anything but that, what she found was more danger than she had ever been exposed to. She knew though if she had her time again she wouldn’t change it, the rough start Nicole and Waverly had endured only brought them closer together in the end. They had to fight for each other from the very beginning and she knew they would only have to keep fighting. They’d have to fight against people who wanted to stop them from being happy, against new rivals, against old rivals, against people who thought they were wrong for different reasons, against those who wished to hurt them physically or emotionally but they were both prepared to do so.

The time would come where they would have to do just as they had planned that morning, they would have to push their comforts aside to take hold of their own lives when they were strong enough to do so. When they had enough allies and had regained their strength they would have to risk their lives again to taste real freedom that they had never experienced; something that so many people took for granted every day. They would place their lives on the line, their health and relationships just to be left alone but they would do so together.

It was not that time though, for that moment Nicole and Waverly could enjoy the time they were borrowing as much as they allowed themselves. Behind closed doors, they could pretend for moments in the day that they were just like anyone else and those would be the times they would treasure the most; the times they would draw strength from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, so sorry for the super late post on this one! I hope everyone is well and you enjoyed this story :)


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